Senate amends acts for commissions over MD, chairman roles

The Senate has commenced the process to amend the Northwest and Southeast Development Commission Acts to resolve issues around the positions of Managing Director and Chairman.

During the session, the South-South Development Commission bill was passed for a second reading.

Presenting the amendment bills, Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele explained that the proposed amendment to the Northwest Development Commission Act of 2024 aims to ensure fair geopolitical representation on the Commission’s Governing Board.

The amendments also seek to avoid appointing both the Chairman and the Managing Director from the same state within the zone, and require Senate confirmation of these appointments as stipulated by the Nigerian Constitution.

“To ensure fairness and proper representation in line with federal character principles, the membership of the commission must reflect other geopolitical zones, aligning with existing Acts governing federal commissions,” Bamidele stated.

He offered similar justifications for the proposed changes to the Southeast Development Commission Act.

Following the second reading, Senate President Godswill Akpabio emphasised that these amendments were critical for the smooth functioning of the development commissions in the respective zones.

Meanwhile, the Senate also passed the bill for the establishment of the South-South Development Commission for a second reading, just months after initially opposing it.

Senators Asuquo Ekpenyong (APC, Cross River South) and Seriake Dickson (PDP, Bayelsa West) argued in favour of the bill, successfully convincing their colleagues across party lines to back the proposal.

Senator Dickson clarified that the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), often confused as a zonal body, is a resource-based commission designed to address the environmental damage caused by oil exploration across the oil-producing states.

He highlighted that the NDDC serves regions beyond the South-South, including parts of the Southeast and Southwest, while the proposed South-South Commission would be strictly zonal.

With overwhelming support from the Senate, President Akpabio referred the bill to the Senate Committee on Special Duties, tasking the committee to report within one week.