The Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Godswill Akpabio has said that the immediate past Chief of Staff to the President, the late Abba Kyari, sacked ex-Managing Director of the Nigeria delta Development Commission (NDDC), Mrs Joi Nunieh from the IMC over alleged insubordination and lack of certificates.

While denying various allegations against him by the House panel, especially by the former acting MD, Akpabio said, “It is just that we don’t want to scandalise anybody. What we did was to expand the interim management and replace the then managing director, when we saw these flaws. But I pointed out on television that she was relieved of her appointment not because of anything but because of insubordination.

“My permanent secretary wrote seven letters to her. Even to attend the Federal Executive Council meeting on the 5th of February to come and give her scorecard, she refused to attend. She felt she was bigger than the minister and her budget was higher than the ministry’s.

“For insubordination, that was the reason she was relieved of her position. However, there were a lot of undercurrents. For instance, we did not want to scandalise her. She even swore to a fake affidavit that she had NYSC (certificate) when she did not have one.”

The minister stated that he had never asked anybody to swear an oath of allegiance to him. “Just for the notice of the committee, I have no presidential ambition,” he stated.

Akpabio also dismissed the claim by Nunieh that the IMC under her leadership spent only N8bn. “The total expenditure before the Pondei committee, that they spent, was about N23bn,” he stated.

The minister also denied asking Nunieh or any member of the IMC for N10bn to be spent as Christmas bonus. “That allegation is false and it is from the pit of hell,” he said.