The Acting Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC)Prof Nelson Brambaifa, has said the Commission will continue to follow the proper public procurement procedures to ensure that its funds are applied judiciously for development purposes.
Brambaifa stated this at the opening of a one-week workshop for the Commission’s executive management and directors at the Golden Tulip Hotel in Port Harcourt.
The NDDC Chief Executive Officer said that the Commission’s mandate included delivering services that give full value for money, noting that it was necessary for the management to be prudent in its efforts to drive development in the Niger Delta region.
Brambaifa said that the workshop on the procurement processes would impact positively on the workings of the NDDC as it relates to public procurement and the management of funds for the interventionist agency.
He remarked: “Our goal is clear; we want everyone to be conversant with the procurement process because it is not something that should be left for only procurement officers. The experts have made it simple for us to understand the issues in procurement.
“I have no doubt that someday we will fully integrate the electronic data management into our procurement system. We will adopt the electronic platform to enhance the efficiency and transparency of our processes.”
The NDDC boss said that it was important that the Commission’s staff fully understand the procurement process to ensure that funds meant for development projects and programmes were used judiciously.
The NDDC Director for Procurement, Theophilus Alagoa, explained that the training was organised to enlighten officers of the Commission to know their roles in the procurement process.
He said: “Before now, procurement is seen as the responsibility of only those in the procurement unit of the Commission. The fact is that procurement is for every officer in NDDC and they have roles and responsibilities as specified in the Procurement Act 2007.”
He said further: “We want NDDC staff to wake up to their responsibilities by arming them with knowledge. We noticed that a lot of people don’t know their roles. In fact, every department in NDDC has the power to procure for itself. The procurement unit is only there to ensure compliance with the Public Procurement Act.”
The Chief Executive Officer of Tabriz Procurement Solutions Ltd, Emeka Ezeh, who facilitated the workshop, said that training on the processes of public procurement was very crucial for development agencies like the NDDC because of the enormous responsibilities they were saddled with.
He emphasized the need for government agencies and departments to imbibe the culture of proper public procurement, noting that it was important that public procurement in the NDDC was done in the right way. We believe that when the NDDC and other key Federal Government agencies adopt this culture, it will go a long way to ensure that there is value for money in service delivery.
Ezeh said the workshop was necessary to remind directors of NDDC of their responsibilities and the need for them to always adhere to the guidelines set up by law to ensure that public funds in their custody were expended judiciously according to the laid down rules.
He observed: “To deliver on its mandate, the NDDC needs to procure according to the laws because the use of public funds is regulated by laws.”