20/07/2025
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HYPPADEC: STAKEHOLDERS FROWN AT APPOINTMENT OF NON-MEMBER AS MANAGING DIRECTOR, CITE BREACH OF LAW, DEMAND IMMEDIATE REVERSAL
From Our Correspondent, July 18, 2025, Minna
Stakeholders at HYPPADEC member States has frowned at the appointment of Mrs Tomi Somefun as the Managing Director of Hydro-electric Power Producing Area Development Commission.
President Tinubu’s recent appointment of Mrs. Somefun has sparked intense controversy and calls for redress from stakeholders across Nigeria's North Central and other hydro-electric producing states.
According to the Act establishing the Commission, the Managing Director must be appointed from among the hydroelectric power-producing states, which include Niger, Kwara, Kogi, Kebbi, Plateau, Kaduna, Taraba, and Gombe. These states face unique ecological and developmental challenges due to the presence of hydroelectric dams, and the Commission was specifically created to address those issues.
Mrs. Somefun, a seasoned financial expert and former Managing Director of Unity Bank Plc, hails from Oyo State, a region not listed among Nigeria’s hydro-electric power producing areas. Her appointment is now facing strong backlash, with critics describing it as a direct violation of the HYPPADEC Act.
Many see the appointment as not just a legal breach, but an affront to justice, equity, and regional representation. “Can a person from Niger or Kogi be appointed to head the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC)?” a concerned citizen asked. “Such an act would be considered highly provocative by the people of the Niger Delta. The same logic must apply here.”
The development has triggered widespread calls for the immediate reversal of what is now being described as an “illegal appointment.” Civil society groups, youth organizations, and political actors from affected states have urged their Governors, Senators, and House Representatives to rise in defense of their constituents and demand the enforcement of the HYPADEC law.
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