President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the termination of the appointment of the Project Director of the Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project (HYPREP), Dr. Ferdinand Giadom.

A tweet sighted on the official Twitter handle of the Nigerian Presidency, @NGRPresident, which announced the sack on Tuesday evening, also announced the appointment of Professor Nanibarini Zabbey as Giadom’s replacement.

“President @MBuhari has approved the termination of the appointment of the @HYPREPNigeria Project Coordinator, Dr. Ferdinand Giadom, and the appointment of Prof. Nanibarini Zabbey as the new Project Coordinator, with immediate effect”, the tweet read.

A statement Federal Ministry of Environment, signed by Media Aide to the Minister, Olusegun Shogbola, also announced the same development.

“His Excellency PRESIDENT MUHAMMADU BUHARI GCFR has approved the termination of the appointment of Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project (HYPREP) Project Coordinator Dr. Ferdinand Giadom, to be replaced with PROF. NANIBARINI ZABBEY as the new Project Coordinator of HYPREP with immediate effect.”

“Prof Nanibarini Zabbey is a foremost and renowned Ogoni expert on hydrobiology and has extensive experience and background on remediation related activities with bias in bio-monitoring and restoration ecology.

“Until his appointment, he was a Senior lecturer at Department of Fisheries Faculty of Agriculture, University of Porthacourt. He is the first African recipient of the Association of the Sciences of Limnology and Oceanography (ASLO) 2022 Ruth Patrick Award for research and engagement with a critical impact on recovery of the Niger Delta ecosystem from oil spills and environmental justice for affected communities”, it read.