ABUJA- The Federal Government has approved a one-week extension for the submission of the final reports of the Technical Steering Committee on Niger Delta Crises.

Vice-President Goodluck Jonathan inaugurated the 40-member committee on September 8, to study and make recommendations on how best to address the problems.

The Chairman, Mr. Ledun Mitee confirmed the extension when he spoke with newsmen in Abuja , on Wednesday.

He said the extension was granted following a request by the committee, which was unable to meet the initial 10 days deadline due to the challenges of the assignment.

He disclosed that the Committee had received over 2,000 written submissions in addition to thousands of memos, e-mail and text messages from various interest groups and individuals across the country.

“We have done the literature review of all the submissions made to the committee and we need additional time to conclude our reports,” he said.

Mitee expresses reservations at the attitude of some state governments in the area saying that only Delta State and a few others had showed interest in ensuring the success of the committee.

He enjoined Nigerians to see the assignment given to the committee “as a national work, not just a Niger Delta problem” so as to move the country forward.