President Bola Tinubu on Friday approved the appointment of a Governing Council of the Midstream and Downstream Gas Infrastructure Fund (MDGIF) to be domiciled in the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA).
This was announced in a statement by Chief Ajuri Ngelale, Special Adviser to the President, Media & Publicity.
According to the statement, Tinubu appointed Ekperikpe Ekpo, Minister of State, Petroleum Resources (Gas), as the MDGIF Governing Council Chairman.
Also appointed are Mr. Oluwole Adama, MDGIF Executive Director; Mr. Joseph Tolorunshe, MDGIF Governing Council Secretary; Engr. Farouk Ahmed, Chief Executive of NMDPRA; and a Representative of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
Other appointees include Ms. Amina Maina (North-East), Mr. Edet David Ubong (South-South), and Mr. Tajudeen Bolaji Musa (South-West), who were appointed as independent members of MDGIF.
Tinubu also appointed a representative of the Federal Ministry of Finance to the governing council.
The President charged the appointees to discharge their duties by upholding the highest standards of transparency, discipline, and patriotism in line with his administration’s drive to enhance the role of the gas sector in achieving robust and inclusive economic growth for Nigeria.
![Rev. Fr. Anthony Odiong, a US-based Nigerian Louisiana Catholic priest, was arrested in Florida on Tuesday for possessing child pornography, according to law authorities. The suspect is reportedly accused of many other cases of sexual assault. The Waco, Texas, Police Department announced in a Facebook post on Tuesday that officers detained Father Anthony Odiong in Ave Maria, Florida, with assistance from the United States Marshals Service. Waco police announced in March that they had received "credible information" about a sexual assault allegedly committed by Odiong in Texas in 2012. “During the subsequent investigation, a case of possession of child pornography was uncovered,” the police said. The priest was apprehended in Florida by the Caribbean Regional Fugitive Task Force. The Waco Police Department said that he will be extradited to Texas. Odiong had previously served in the Archdiocese of New Orleans before being removed as priest in December of last year due to controversy over homilies in which he claimed, among other things, that the Catholic Church was being taken over by "the gays." At the time, the priest was also accused of abusive behaviour; a Louisiana lady claimed in U.S. bankruptcy court that Odiong had committed both financial and sexual abuse against her. Prior to joining the New Orleans Archdiocese, Odiong served in at least two Texas parishes. On Tuesday, Waco police stated that during their sexual assault investigation, "the presence of other survivors was revealed." “Multiple women have come forward to tell similar experiences as the sexual assault survivor who reported the initial allegation,” the police department said. “Survivors’ experiences ranged from sexual assault and indecent assault, more commonly recognised as groping, and financial abuse, with some survivors experiencing every element of Anthony Odiong’s manipulation.” The police said they “believe there may be more survivors, and we wish to speak with anyone who [has] had similar encounters” with the priest. The Archdiocese of New Orleans issued a brief news release on Tuesday noting Odiong's arrest in Florida. The archdiocese “encourages anyone with any information to contact law enforcement,” the release said.](https://chronicle.ng/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/ezgif-6-4730550ede-450x300.jpg "Odiong: US-based Nigerian Catholic priest convicted over sexual assault")
