North-East Group Alleges Nepotism, Calls on Tinubu to Probe NEDC

By Reporter

The North-East Youths Renaissance Assembly (NEYRA) has raised concerns about nepotism within the North-East Development Commission (NEDC) under its current Managing Director (MD), from the Kanuri ethnic group in Borno State.

The group, led by National Coordinator Alhaji Dauda Gambo Musa, in a statement, urged President Bola Tinubu to address these issues to prevent regional conflicts.

Alhaji Musa stated that the NEDC was established by former President Muhammadu Buhari, to promote equitable development across the North-East region, recovering from prolonged insurgencies. However, he criticized the current Managing Director, Mohammed Alkali, for favoring individuals from his ethnic group in key appointments and contract awards.

Musa highlighted that Borno State has received over 80 projects valued at over 200 billion naira, representing over 60% of the region’s project outlay, while Bauchi State has less than 40 projects valued at under 15 billion naira. Similar disparities exist in Adamawa, Gombe, Taraba, and Yobe states.

NEYRA pointed out that projects in Borno are awarded on a rapid-response basis with short-term completion cycles, whereas other states face extended completion periods of up to three or four years.

The group also questioned the recent approval given to the commission’s projects in Bauchi State by the House of Representatives Committee on NEDC. They alleged that the evaluation lacked transparency, as the Committee Chairman, Hon. Usman Zanna, a fellow Kanuri, selected only six members from a 48-member body for a public relations inspection.

Additionally, NEYRA revealed that the recently commissioned projects in Bauchi, praised by the committee, were actually initiated between 2020 and 2021, prior to the current review period. Many of these projects, including mass housing, roads, bridges, mega schools, and community healthcare centers, remain incomplete.

Expressing frustration over these issues, NEYRA called on President Tinubu to initiate a forensic probe into the commission’s activities under its current leadership, warning that the current calm might precede a storm of unrest.