President Bola Tinubu has asked the Senate to screen and confirm Zainab Marwa as a member of the Governing Board of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC).
Ms Marwa is expected to represent the North-east geopolitical zone on the commission’s board, filling the vacancy left by Abdulrazak Namdas’s resignation in March to pursue his governorship ambition in Adamawa State.
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The president’s request was contained in a letter read by the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, during Thursday’s plenary.
In the letter, Mr Tinubu said the nomination was made in accordance with Section 2 of the Niger Delta Development Commission Establishment Act and was intended to restore the North-east’s representation on the commission’s governing board.
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The president said Ms Marwa’s appointment would ensure continuity in the board’s activities and preserve the zone’s representation in the affairs of the intervention agency.
“In compliance with the provisions of Section 2 of the Niger Delta Development Commission Establishment Act, I am pleased to present for confirmation by the Senate the nomination of Dr Zainab Marwa as a member representing the North-east in the Governing Board of the Niger Delta Development Commission.
“The Senate is invited to note that the appointment of Dr Zainab Marwa is to fill a vacuum created by the resignation of the immediate past member of the board, Hon. Abdulrazak Namdas, from the North-East Zone, who resigned on the 30th day of March, 2026, to contest for the position of Governor of Adamawa State”, the president’s letter reads.
After reading the letter, Mr Akpabio referred the request to the Committee on NDDC for screening and consideration.
He directed the committee to report back to the Senate within two weeks.
The NDDC was established in 2000 by the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo through the NDDC Act to address the socio-economic and environmental challenges facing Nigeria’s oil-producing Niger Delta region.
The commission was created after decades of agitation by communities in the region over environmental degradation, poverty, inadequate infrastructure and underdevelopment despite the area’s contribution to the country’s oil wealth.
The NDDC is mandated to formulate policies and guidelines for the development of the Niger Delta and to conceive, plan and implement projects aimed at improving the living conditions of residents. Its core responsibilities include the provision of roads, bridges, water supply, electricity, healthcare facilities, educational infrastructure and environmental remediation projects.
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The commission also coordinates development programmes across the nine member states of the region, namely Abia, Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Cross River, Delta, Edo, Imo, Ondo, and Rivers, and serves as a federal intervention agency for addressing developmental deficits in oil-producing communities.
Over the years, the NDDC has undertaken thousands of infrastructure and human capital development projects. However, the agency has also faced persistent allegations of corruption, project abandonment and financial mismanagement, prompting several audits and investigations by the National Assembly and anti-corruption agencies.
The governing board of the commission consists of representatives from the member states, oil-producing companies and geopolitical zones, as well as key federal ministries. The board is responsible for providing policy direction and oversight for the agency’s operations and development programmes.
