President Mohammadu Buhari had recently removed the NDDC board led by Prof. Nelson Brambaifa, a known lackey of Amaechi. A new board led by Bernard Okumagba from Delta State, was named.
Some South-South Governors led By Seriaki Dickson pounced on the announcement and announced rejection of the new board, demanding to see the President.
The shocking sack of the board came few days after N30billion was released to the agency by the Federal Government.
Piqued over the abrupt sacking of his lackey, Amaechi who have been banking on the funds for some of the emergency contracts awarded to him and his fronts, told the Braimbraifa led management of the NDDC not to hand over to the the newly appointed board led by Chief Bernard Okumagba from Delta state.
He reached out to South South Governors and some groups to reject the newly appointed board members.
Sources told pointblanknews.com that Amaechi mobilized the South South Governors claiming that the appointment shortchanged the zone as the new MD ought not to come from Delta state.
He also was said to have capitalized on the frosty relationships between Gov Seriaki Dickson of Bayelsa state and Petroleum Minister Timipre Sylva, Edo State Gov Godwin Obaseki and Adams Oshiomhole, to mobilize against the new board of the NDDC.
Sources told pointblanknews.com that Amaechi had banked on the N30billion funds to execute some projects in his constituency and was shocked when the board led by his lackey, Professor Nelson Braimbraifa, was sacked soon as the funds hit the agency’s account.
Projects worth almost N2billion were awarded to the Transport Minister’s constituency.
Investigations revealed that a lot of projects awarded to Amaechi or his fronts are either phony or never done.
It was gathered that Chief of staff to the President, Mallam Abba Kyari have been upset at reports of how Amaechi uses Prof Braimbraifa’s led management to collect emergency contracts running into billions.
Amaechi, according to Presidency sources had few months ago met with President Buhari, pleading to have the Brambaifa led Acting management to be confirmed. After the meeting, the Transport Minister had assured the then NDDC management that the President would confirm them.
Unknown to them, Kyari had collected dossiers of looting carried out by the Braimbraifa and his team and seen projects awarded to Amaechi and his fronts.
Soon as the President jetted out to Japan for the TICAD7 conference, Kyari immediately sacked the NDDC board of Braimbraifa and immediately replaced them with nominees from Deputy Senate President Ovie Omo-Agege, Adams Oshiomhole, Timipre Sylva and Godswill Akpabio.
The new board as constituted, effectively took away Amaechi’s influence from the NDDC which has been one of his cash-cows for years.
Sources told Pointblanknews.com that the emergence of Bernard Okumagba, a thoroughbred financial expert is specifically meant to sanitize the agency where contracts are often inflated and over invoicing the order of the day.
Attached documents shows some of the recent projects awarded by the sacked Braimbraifa led management some of which belonged to Amaechi.
