The Senate had resolved on Thursday to amend the North West and South East Development Commissions Acts, while the South-South Development Commission Bill passed for a second reading on the floor of the red chamber.
Opeyemi Bamidele, leader of the Senate who led the debate on the two bills said amendment to the North West Development Commission Act, 2024, would provide for geo-political representation in the governing board of the commission.
He explained that the amendment bill also seeks to reconcile the lacuna in the provisions relating to the appointments of the chairman and the managing director of the commission by ensuring that the two are not appointed from the same state of the zone.
“For effective representation, and in line with the principles of federal character, membership of the commission must be extended to other geo-political zones of the country which would be in tandem with extant Acts, relating to the establishment of federal commissions,” Senator Bamidele said.
He gave similar reasons for the amendment of the South East Development Commission Act.
After passing the amendment bills for second reading, the President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, said the proposed amendments to the acts were very necessary for the smooth running of the commissions in the zones.
Meanwhile, a concerned group operating under the auspices of Northern Christian Youth Professionals on Thursday declared that appointments by President Bola Tinubu into the newly created North West Development Commission did not reflect the diversity of the region.
In a statement issued by the group’s national Chairman, Isaac Abrak, the group said, no single member of the board was of the Christian faith and urged President Tinubu to reverse the appointments.
The statement reads in part: “We are deeply concerned about the recent appointments to the board of directors of the North West Development Commission by President Tinubu. Unfortunately, these appointments do not reflect the diversity of the region, as no Christians from the six states were selected.
“For the sake of inclusivity and fair representation, it is imperative that Christians are appointed to the commission. The current situation is unacceptable and perpetuates marginalization. We urge President Tinubu to reassess these appointments and make necessary adjustments to ensure balanced representation.
“Leaving these appointments unchanged will have negative consequences for the commission’s success and exacerbate religious divisions in the region and Nigeria as a whole. We call on President Tinubu to prioritize unity and inclusivity in his decision-making.
“We request that President Tinubu takes immediate action to address these concerns and promote inclusivity in the North West Development Commission.”
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