Mkpoikana Udoma 25 March 2015, Sweetcrude, Port Harcourt – The tempo of work at the site of the new headquarters of the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, along Eastern Bye-pass in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, has increased, as the commission appears set to relocate to the high-rise permanent office complex before the end of the year.
Members of the NDDC Governing Board inspected the multi-storey building and showed an eagerness to complete the project as soon as possible.
Briefing members of the board and management at the project site, the NDDC Executive Director, Projects, Engr. Tuoyo Omatsuli, said that the contractor had given a firm assurance that the building would be ready for commissioning before the end of the year.
He said that the main office complex, which had 12 floors, was now at the roofing level, while work was progressing satisfactorily on the ancillary structures, comprising facilities such as a medical centre, restaurant, bank, car parks, among others.
The chairman of the NDDC Board, Senator Bassey Ewa-Henshaw, who led other board members, including the executive management of the commission, said that they were anxious to complete the project so that staff of the commission would have a more conducive environment to discharge their duties.
“When we inspected the project last year, we had hopes that it would be completed in the first quarter of this year. I still wish for an early completion date because the sooner we move in, the better. I expect the contractor to buckle up so as to meet the target we have set,” the chairman said.
The NDDC Managing Director, Sir Bassey Dan-Abia, said that the commission was eager to complete the project as quickly as possible in line with the resolve of the current board of the commission to promptly complete all on-going projects.
He noted that the project had been put on fast-track, adding that necessary steps were taken to address possible funding challenges.
According to the Managing Director, the NDDC Board decided that it was time to move out from a rented property to a permanent Headquarters.
He remarked that the new Headquarters project was inherited from the defunct Oil Minerals Producing Area Development Commission, OMPADEC.
In the same vein, the NDDC has charged members of the Niger Delta Youth Movement, NDYM, to put their house in order to enable them contribute positively to the development of Nigeria’s oil-rich region.
The NDDC Chief Executive Officer gave the advice when leaders of the NDYM paid him a courtesy visit at the headquarters of the commission in Port Harcourt.
Barr. Dan-Abia remarked that the NDYM had an important role to play in protecting the interest of the people the region that had been neglected in the past.
He said that the NDDC would continue to assist the youths to be able to play their roles in supporting the political leaders from the region. “This is a time we must all unite to support the transformation agenda of President Goodluck Jonathan,” he said.
