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Akinwande Soji-Ojo
President Muhammadu Buhari has asked the Senate to confirm his Special Assistant on Social Media, Lauretta Onochie,as the substantive chairman of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) board.
The president’s request was contained in a letter read by Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, on the floor of the upper legislative chamber, on Wednesday.
Apart from Onochie, the president sent the names of 12 other nominees as board members of the commission.
They are Samuel Ibukun, Managing Director; Charles Ehigie Airhiavbere, Director of Finance; Charles Ogunmola, Director of Project; Dimgba Erugba (Abia); Ene Wilcox (Akwa Ibom); Pius Odubu (Edo); Gbenga Odegba (Ondo); Anthony Ekene (Imo) and Onyekachi Dimgba (Rivers).
Others are Mohammed Kabiru Abubakar (Nasarawa), Tallen Mamma (Adamawa) and Sodique Sani (North West representative).
This is not the first time the president would appoint Onochie to a position that is subject to the confirmation of the senate.
Onochie was nominated as a Commissioner of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in October 2020.
Her nomination sparked outrage over concerns that she is a member of the All Progressives Congress (APC), but the presidential aide said she resigned her membership of the ruling party in 2019.
In 2021, when the upper legislative chamber considered and screened her for the appointment, she was eventually disqualified.
At the time, the senate said her disqualification was based on the grounds that Buhari had already nominated May Agbamuche as INEC commissioner from Delta, the same state Onochie hails from.