A leadership dispute has reportedly emerged at the Border Communities Development Agency (BCDA) after the agency’s former Executive Secretary, Dakorinama Alabo George, allegedly remained in office despite being replaced by President Bola Tinubu.
According to a Daily Trust report, George, an All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship aspirant in Rivers State, has continued to function as the head of the agency even after the Presidency announced the appointment of former House of Representatives member Abdulrazak Sa’ad Namdas as his replacement.
The development comes amid the controversy surrounding the alleged “phantom” Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council, where Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi falsely presented himself as the council’s Director-General.
President Tinubu had earlier directed all political appointees intending to contest elective positions in the 2027 general elections to resign from their appointments on or before March 31, 2026.
George reportedly resigned to pursue the APC governorship ticket in Rivers State alongside Governor Siminalayi Fubara, Kingsley Chinda and Tonye Cole.
In a statement issued on June 26 by the President’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, the Presidency announced Namdas as the new head of the BCDA.
The statement partly read: “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.
“A former member of the House of Representatives representing Ganye/Jada/Mayo Belwa/Toungo federal constituency of Adamawa State, Namdas was the spokesperson of the 8th House of Representatives, and an aspirant in the just-concluded governorship primary election in Adamawa State. As a seasoned journalist and public relations practitioner, he also served as Chief Press Secretary to former Governor Boni Haruna of Adamawa State.”
The Presidency added that “All appointments are effective immediately.”
However, Daily Trust reported that George, who previously served as Rivers State Commissioner for Works under the administrations of Nyesom Wike and Siminalayi Fubara, has allegedly refused to vacate the office despite the presidential announcement.
Sources quoted by the newspaper claimed that although George resigned to contest the APC governorship primary, he never handed over the office and quietly retained control of its assets.
The report also stated that George appeared on the APC list of screened governorship aspirants as “Dr George Alabo”, where he was listed as cleared to contest.
He later withdrew from the race, reportedly to support Kingsley Chinda, who emerged as the APC governorship candidate in Rivers State.
One source claimed George’s continued stay in office is being backed by influential government figures.
“He is being backed by some government officials, including the FCT Minister. Dr George was Wike’s commissioner of works in Rivers State when the latter was governor. It was also Wike who nominated him for the BCDA position in 2024,” the source said.
Another source alleged that some of George’s supporters were working with powerful officials in the Presidency to keep him in office without President Tinubu’s knowledge.
The report added that some supporters shared posts on Facebook claiming the President had reversed George’s replacement.
One of the posts stated: “The President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Nigeria, His Excellency Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, in his wisdom, has reversed the erroneous replacement of Dr Dax George-Kelly as the Executive Secretary of the Border Communities Development Agency, BCDA.”
In a WhatsApp response that was later deleted, George referred inquiries about his position to the Presidency and insisted he never resigned.
“The Presidency, through the office of the SGF, will be in a better place to answer you pls. But just so you know, at no time did I resign. I never contested cos [because] I withdrew from the race before the primaries. Thanks, and have a good day.
“An error was made, and it was quickly corrected. That’s the much I can tell you,” he wrote before deleting the message.
He reportedly did not respond to further requests for clarification.
Responding to the claims, presidential spokesman Bayo Onanuga maintained that George had been replaced and dismissed reports that he had been reappointed.
“Not true. Namdas stays,” Onanuga said in a brief response.
Despite the Presidency’s position, George has reportedly continued to hold official meetings as head of the agency.
His profile also remains on the BCDA website as the serving Executive Secretary.
Among his recent activities was a meeting last Thursday with the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, where he reportedly appealed for timely release of budgetary allocations to the agency. Photographs from the meeting were later shared on Facebook.
