NCDMB decries “recycled” allegations by recruited groups
Sopuruchi Onwuka
The Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) decried sustained campaigns of calumny against its management, alleging that some aggrieved elements are sponsoring allegations of overspending on single programmes hosted by the agency.
In a statement made available to The Oracle Today, the agency which is responsible for trapping economic benefits from the petroleum industry for domestic economic development lamented that a sponsored group masquerading as a coalition of civil society groups was recycling a “bogus and unfounded allegations” it has already rebutted.
The allegation borders on funds spent by the agency in delivering on its obligation on stakeholder engagement hosted by the Executive Secretary, Engr Felix Ogbe.
“While we have dismissed these patently false allegations in a widely circulated press statement …, the purveyors of this evil campaign have gone ahead to recruit unsuspecting journalists across some national media to continue to peddle their lies,” the agency lamented.
In restating its denial of the accusations, the NCDMB declared that “neither the Board nor the Executive Secretary spent the amount stated in the headline of the referenced statement.”
It added that the strategic workshop with heads of ministries, departments, and agencies of government that pertain to the oil and gas industry was hosted to interrogate and find areas of alignment in the implementation of the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development (NOGICD) Act, 2010.
It explained that the exercise was “in line with our Nigerian Content 10-Year Strategic Roadmap’s enabler on Stakeholder Collaboration and Engagement. The workshop is held every two years and involves the leadership and senior management of those critical agencies, with a view to ensuring a harmonious policy and regulatory implementation by all agencies and institutions connected with the NOGICD Act implementation.”
The media release from the Corporate Communications unit of the NCDMB stated that “due process was followed and that all expenditures in relation to this Strategic Workshop and other projects of the Board were made in accordance with approved financial and procurement guidelines.
“There was no such expenditure of N9.9 billion by the Board for consultancy services. It is instructive to note that this figure has moved from N7.7 billion to this new figure within a week by these fake groups masquerading as civil society groups.”
The NCDMB clarified that “S.B Capital Partners & Advisory Limited, engaged by the Board since 2018, offers credit review services for the NCDMB Nigerian Content Intervention Fund (NCIF) with Bank of Industry.”
It added that “S.B Capital Partners & Advisory Limited credit review is to determine economic viability and bankability of projects submitted to the Board through the Bank of Industry (BoI) on our Nigerian Content Intervention Fund (NCIF).”
The statement has it that “the Board conducts all its operations within the highest levels of transparency, which is why we have for three consecutive years won the award from the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC) as the number one agency in transparency and efficiency amongst all federal ministries, departments and agencies.”
“We urge the media and members of the public to completely disregard the concocted allegations by these desperate individuals, who are determined to tarnish the hard-earned reputation of the Board.
“We know the sources and sponsors of these attacks on the Board and in due time they would be revealed,” the agency declared in the statement.
