SSDC: Bill to establish South-South Development Commission scales second reading at Senate

In a significant reversal, the Senate on Thursday passed for second reading a Bill seeking to establish a South-South Development Commission, just months after initially rejecting the proposal.

The Bill, titled “A Bill for an Act to Establish South-South Development Commission charged with the responsibility to receive and manage funds from the Federation Account Allocation and other sources, donations, grants, aids for the integration, development, resolution of infrastructural deficit, militancy, communal crises, as well as tackle ecological and environmental problems; and for related matters, 2024,” was sponsored by Senator Asuquo Ekpenyong (APC – Cross River South).

Notably, the Bill received co-sponsorship from all Senators representing the South-South region, including prominent figures such as Senate President Godswill Akpabio, Senator Henry Seriake Dickson, and others from Cross River, Bayelsa, Akwa Ibom, and Edo States.

During the debate, Senators Asuquo Ekpenyong and Seriake Dickson presented strong arguments in favor of the Bill, which garnered cross-party and geo-political support.

If passed, the Commission would address key issues such as infrastructural deficits, militancy, and ecological challenges in the South-South, a region crucial to Nigeria’s economy.

Ekpenyong in his lead debate, said: “Now, some may ask, Isn’t the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) already fulfilling these functions? Mr. President, Distinguished colleagues, I will provide some explanations for why the proposed South-South Development Commission is distinct and necessary.

“The NDDC is a multi regional body that includes states such as Abia and Imo from the South-East Region, and Ondo State from the South-West Region. However, both of these regions now have their own dedicated development commissions-the South-East Development Commission which includes Abia and Imo, and the South-West Development Commission which includes Ondo.

“This arrangement has diluted the focus and resources of the NDDC, making it less effective in addressing the peculiar challenges of the South-South. We need a commission that is exclusively dedicated to our region, that understands our unique issues, and can craft tailored solutionsfor them.

“Another distinction lies in the way funds are allocated. The NDDC allocates resources to member states based on the quantum of oil production in each state. While oil production remains crucial, it has led to unequal development, where states with higher oil output rightly receive a disproportionate share of resources, leaving others behind.

“The South-South Development Commission will be funded on the principle of equality among the member states, ensuring that every state – whether a top oil producer or not-receives its fair share of resources for development.

“This new funding structure will focus on regional development, not just oil revenue, and will include other streams of funding such as federal allocations, international grants, and developmental partnerships.

“While the NDDC addresses the Niger Delta oil producing region in a broad sense, the South-South Development Commission will hone in on the specific developmental, economic, and ecological challenges facing the South South.

“This tailored focus will enhance the ability of the commission to deliver timely and effective solutions.

“It is clear that the current developmental apparatus for the South-South is insufficient to meet the needs of our people. We cannot continue to rely solely on the NDDC.

“The creation of the South-South Development Commission will provide a dedicated, well-funded body that is uniquely positioned to drive equitable and sustainable development, resolve ecological problems, and address the root causes of conflict in our region.

“I therefore urge you, to lend your support to this bill and give the people of the South-South the hope and development they deserve.”

Senator Dickson in his contribution to the Bill, said that the NDDC, now being mistaken to be in the mold of zonal development commissions, is a resource based agency, that cut across the South-South geo-political zone.

Dickson said: “NDDC is a resource based commission meant to mitigate against environmental degradation caused by oil exploration across the oil producing state and fast-track development in the region.

“The States covered by NDDC cuts across South-South, South-East and South West, unlike zonal based commissions which the proposed South-South Commission, falls under.”

Senators Barau Jibrin, Ede Dafinone, Sunday Karimi, among others supported the Bill.

The Deputy President of the Senate, Barau, who also supported the bill, canvassed a name-change for the NDDC to capture every community that produces oil in the country.

He argued that with the coming of the SSDC, the NDDC should undergo a name-change from being an agency for Niger Delta affairs to either an oil-bearing or a resources-bearing development commission.

Barau explained that in this way, states that produce oil but are outside the Niger Delta, will automatically become members of the NDDC.

He cited Gombe, Bauchi, Kogi, Lagos, Ogun and others as states that have oil deposits and should be part of the NDDC in the future after the Act would have been amended.

“That means we have to look at the NDDC’s Act and change the name to oil bearing or producing areas development commission.

“When we have a community or state that has oil any time in the future, they are automatic members”, Barau said.

President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, who presided over the session, agreed with Barau, saying, “That any state that produces oil in commercial quantities in the future will automatically be part of the NDDC. That is what we have to look at also.”

He later referred the bill to the Senate Committee on Special Duties for further legislative work and to report back within one week.

The Red Chamber also amended Northwest and South East Development Commission Acts over positions of Managing Directors and Chairmen.

In his separate lead debate on the amendment to the NWDC and SEDC Acts amendment bills, the leader of the Senate, Senator Opeyemi Bamidele said amendment on the North West Development Commission Act, 2024, seeks to provide for geo – political representation in the Governing Board of the Commission.

He said the amendment bill also seeks to reconcile the lacuna that exists 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 , as well as subject the appointments to the confirmation of the Senate in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria .

For effective representation, and in line with the principles of Federal Character, it is imperative that membership of the commission 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 “, he said .

The leader gave similar reasons in his lead debate for amendment of the South East Development Commission Acts.

In his remarks after passing the amendments bill for second reading, Akpabio said the proposed amendments to the Acts, were very necessary for smooth running of the commissions across the zones.