A leadership dispute has emerged at the Border Communities Development Agency (BCDA) as Dr. Dakorinama Alabo George, an ally of Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister Nyesom Wike, continues to occupy the agency’s top office despite a presidential announcement naming former House of Representatives spokesman Abdulrazak Sa’ad Namdas as his successor.
The controversy comes months after President Bola Ahmed Tinubu directed all political appointees seeking elective offices in the 2027 general elections to resign on or before March 31, 2026, in line with Section 88(1) of the Electoral Act, 2026, and the timetable released by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
George, who sought the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship ticket in Rivers State, was announced to have been replaced by Namdas in a statement issued on June 26 by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga.
According to the statement, Namdas took over following George’s resignation to pursue elective office in Rivers State.
“President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has appointed Abdulrazak Sa’ad Namdas as the new Director General of the Border Communities Development Agency (BCDA). Dr. Namdas replaces Dr. Dakorinama Alabo George, who resigned to contest for an elective post in his home state,” the statement said.
The Presidency added that all appointments took immediate effect.
Namdas, a former lawmaker who represented Ganye/Jada/Mayo Belwa/Toungo Federal Constituency of Adamawa State, previously served as spokesperson of the 8th House of Representatives and Chief Press Secretary to former Adamawa State Governor Boni Haruna.
However, findings indicate that George has continued to function as the head of the agency despite the announcement of his replacement.
Sources familiar with the development alleged that although George resigned to participate in the APC governorship race in Rivers State, he never formally handed over the affairs of the agency before later withdrawing from the contest.
Documents from the APC screening committee dated May 11, 2026, reportedly listed George among governorship aspirants cleared to participate in the party’s primary election.
He eventually withdrew from the race before the primary election, paving the way for Kingsley Chinda, widely regarded as the preferred candidate of FCT Minister Nyesom Wike, to emerge as the party’s flag bearer.
Sources claimed that after withdrawing from the race, George quietly resumed duties at the BCDA.
One source alleged that influential government officials were supporting his continued stay in office.
“He is being backed by some government officials, including the FCT Minister. Dr. George served as Commissioner for Works under both Wike and Governor Siminalayi Fubara in Rivers State, and it was Wike who nominated him for the BCDA appointment in 2024,” the source said.
Efforts to obtain comments from Wike’s Senior Special Assistant on Public Communications and Social Media, Lere Olayinka, were unsuccessful as calls and messages were not returned.
Adding to the confusion, reports circulated on social media claiming that President Tinubu had reversed George’s replacement and reinstated him as Executive Secretary of the agency.
One widely shared Facebook post alleged that the President had corrected an earlier error and restored George to office.
However, the Presidency has firmly denied the claim.
Responding to enquiries, presidential spokesman Bayo Onanuga dismissed reports of George’s reinstatement.
“Not true. Namdas stays,” Onanuga said in a brief response.
In an earlier WhatsApp message, which was later deleted, George denied resigning from office.
“The Presidency through the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation will be in a better place to answer you. At no time did I resign. I never contested because I withdrew before the primaries.
“An error was made and it was quickly corrected. That’s the much I can tell you,” he reportedly wrote before deleting the message.
Despite the Presidency’s clarification, George has continued to carry out official functions as head of the agency.
His profile remains on the BCDA’s official website as the serving Executive Secretary.
Last week, he led a delegation to the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, where he sought the timely release of budgetary allocations to enable the agency execute projects in Nigeria’s border communities.
According to reports from the meeting, George thanked President Tinubu for the N50 billion allocation to the agency in the 2026 budget and stressed that prompt funding would improve infrastructure and living conditions in border communities across the country.
The development has raised questions over administrative coordination within the Federal Government, coming shortly after the controversy surrounding the alleged “Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council,” in which an individual reportedly presented himself as the Director-General of an agency that the Presidency later clarified did not officially exist.
With the Presidency insisting that Abdulrazak Sa’ad Namdas remains the substantive head of the BCDA, the continued presence of George at the agency has fueled concerns over compliance with presidential directives and the enforcement of appointments within the federal civil service.
