ABUJA/Nigeria: Proceedings at the Senate Committee on Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) on Tuesday briefly turned solemn before shifting to rigorous scrutiny, as Ned Munir Nwoko used the Commission’s 2025 budget defence to honour a departed colleague and press long-standing infrastructure concerns affecting Delta State.
At the opening of the session, where NDDC management appeared to defend the Commission’s 2025 estimates, Senator Nwoko drew the committee’s attention to the recent death of former committee chairman, Peter Onyelukachukwu Nwaoboshi. He moved a motion for a minute’s silence in honour of the late lawmaker, which the committee unanimously observed.
The hearing thereafter shifted to substantive budget issues, with Senator Nwoko engaging the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Niger Delta Development Commission, Samuel Ogbuku, on revenue performance and project execution.
In his presentation, Ogbuku disclosed that as of October 31, 2025, the Commission recorded actual revenue of ₦1.985 trillion, exceeding the projected ₦1.911 trillion for the period between April 2024 and September 2025. He said the outcome represented a 104 per cent performance and attributed the improvement largely to the extension of the 2024 budget implementation to December 31, 2025.
Ogbuku further explained that the proposed 2025 estimates, christened the “Budget of Consolidation,” stand at ₦1.75 trillion, reflecting a nine per cent reduction from the 2024 figure. According to him, the downward review was informed by a deliberate no-borrowing policy adopted by the Commission.
However, Senator Nwoko seized the moment to raise concerns over a major road infrastructure project in Delta State which, despite being captured in the previous budget, has yet to commence.
“Mr. MD, when you last appeared before this committee, an issue of great importance to my constituents and the state was raised,” Nwoko said. “I refer to the road traversing Oko, Abala, Utchi, Okpai, Aboh, Asaba-Ase, down to Patani. This project was clearly appropriated, yet no tangible progress has been recorded.”
The senator underscored the project’s strategic and humanitarian significance, noting that it was designed not only as a transport corridor but also as a flood-control intervention for vulnerable communities.
“This coastal road was conceived with embankments to prevent floodwaters from encroaching into hinterland communities and endangering lives,” he said. “It is a project with direct social impact that would significantly improve livelihoods. Unfortunately, despite budgetary provision, nothing has happened.”
Nwoko indicated that the matter would be pursued further when the committee moved into a closed-door session, as members resolved to continue deliberations with the Commission in executive session.
