NPA Inquiry: Hadiza Apologies To Amaechi
As the panel of inquiry set up to investigate matters of financial infractions and abuse of civil service rules by the Managing Director of Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) kicks off, a senior official in the Ministry of Transportation has revealed that the suspended NPA Boss has been secretly reaching out to the sector Minister through some founding members of the ruling party, with an apology and a firm promise to cease all personal attacks via mainstream and social media against him and the investigation panel.
With clear signs that her situation is becoming very difficult to wriggle out of, an obviously rattled Hajia Hadiza Usman is alleged to have impressed it on her contacts to explain to the Minister that her main grouse is the lack of opportunity to defend herself before the suspension order became a media spectacle.
“I think it has dawn on her after the initial “gra-gra” that she made mistakes by not following laid down official channels of communication in taking some of her actions, however we don’t know whether the Minister would respond positively or otherwise to her overtures, said the source.
The Minister of Transportation on Monday 10th May 2021, inaugurated an 11 member administrative panel to investigate certain actions taken from 2016 till date by Hajia Hadiza Usman. Sadly, media handlers close to the suspended MD began to characterized the development as “a personal war between Rotimi Amaechi and Hadiza Usman”.
The Minister had to explain at the event that he is simply doing his job as the supervising Minister to call any agency under him to account. “What is wrong in looking at what is happening in NPA? I don’t see what is wrong in that. As Minister of Transportation for four years, I hardly know what is happening and I want to know now. The President agrees with me that it’s my responsibility as Minister to find out what is going on. It worries me that people are saying we should not ask questions. Nobody has been indicted. Can we know what is going on in NPA? That is the question”, he stated.
It does appear that having thrown everything including the kitchen sink at the Honourable Minister after her suspension was announced, the embattled NPA Managing Director has come to the realisation that using the media to malign her boss is counterproductive, her best bet is to seek reconciliation while hoping that whatever she presents as a defence would be found credible by the panel, the Ministry official advised.
