Akpabio: 'Nunieh didn't have NYSC certificate, I just didn't want to scandalize her'

Niger Delta Minister, Godswill Akpabio, says the former acting Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Joi Nunieh, forged her certificates and didn’t enroll for the mandatory one year National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) program.

During his grilling by a House of Representatives committee probing alleged fraud and corruption in the NDDC on Monday, July 20, 2020, Akpabio said he was alerted to Nunieh’s non-qualification for the job by the late Chief of Staff to the President, Abba Kyari.

Nunieh and Akpabio have been hurling invective at themselves for quite some time now. Nunieh has accused the minister of sexually harassing her.

“We just didn’t want to scandalize her by bringing that up. We wrote to the NYSC DG and they confirmed she didn’t enroll for the program. But the major reason why I fired Nunieh is because of insubordination.

"We summoned her before the Federal Executive Council (FEC) several times and she refused to show up because she has a budget bigger than the ministry’s,” Akpabio told lawmakers, minutes after NDDC boss Pondei fainted and had to be rushed to hospital.

Joy Nunieh (R) and Akpabio (L) on duty (SaharaReporters) Joy Nunieh (R) and Akpabio (L) on duty (SaharaReporters) Pulse Nigeria

Akpabio also denied that the NDDC mismanaged N40 billion in five months.

According to the minister, he has not awarded a kilometer of road in contract terms since he assumed the reins in the ministry.

Akpabio said outside of three contracts involving procurement of buses and the COVID-19 pandemic, he hasn’t been involved in the NDDC’s procurement processes.

The minister also denied all the allegations thrown his way by Nunieh.

The hearing involving Akpabio and the lawmakers was sometimes rancorous, heated and combative.

Akpabio and the lawmakers were sometimes involved in shouting matches, with the latter insisting that he had wrongly assumed the role of MD and Permanent Secretary of the NDDC.

Akpabio denies wrong doing as Niger Delta minister (Punch) Akpabio Pulse Nigeria

Akpabio said as minister, contracts below N1 billion are never brought before him in accordance with the nation’s procurement laws; and that the NDDC has been mismanaging public funds and executed little or no known projects in the Niger Delta, in the 19 years before he got the job to clean up the rot in the agency.

He added that he was always going to receive backlash after commencing a forensic audit of the agency in accordance with President Buhari's directives.

Akpabio also said the NDDC has been awarding contracts to lawmakers, a remark that earned him a tongue lash from one of the committee members.

There were times during this hearing when legislators just couldn’t stop Akpabio from talking, much to their chagrin.

Nunieh was recently 'rescued' from her home by Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike, after more than a dozen police officers surrounded her property in Port Harcourt.