Despite the stiff opposition by the South South Senators, the bill seeking to amend Niger Delta Development Commission Act to accommodate some oil producing states in the country has scaled a second reading.
The nine states captured in the NDDC Act are Cross River, Edo, Delta, Abia, Imo, Bayelsa, Rivers, Akwa-Ibom and Ondo.
However, Senator Olamilekan Adeola (APC, Lagos West), the sponsor of the bill, sought the inclusion of Lagos, Ogun, Bauchi and others that have attained the status of oil producing states in the NDDC.
Adeola noted: “Following the discovery of oil in Bauchi, Lagos and Ogun, these states have officially joined the league of oil producing states in Nigeria following the discovery of crude oil in Alkaleri LGA, Bauchi; Badagry, Lagos, and Ipokia, Ogun State.
“By virtue of this, the states are entitled to the 13 per cent derivation that is due to oil producing states, according to the provision of Section 162 Sub-Section 2 of the Nigerian constitution.”
Arguing, Senators from the South-South geo-political zone have opposed moves by the Senate to include Lagos, Ogun, Bauchi and others that have attained the status of oil producing states in the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC.
The senators raised the objection, Thursday, during the consideration of a Bill for an Act to amend the NDDC Act sponsored by
The Deputy President of the Senate, Ovie Omo- Agege (APC, Delta Central), described Adeola as a classic meddlesome interloper and advised him and his cohorts to intensify efforts for the creation of South West Development Commission.
Matthew Urhoghide (PDP, Edo South) and George Sekibo(PDP, Rivers East) lampooned the move, just as Omo-Agege, Urhoghide and Sekibo, argued that NDDC was created to address the environmental degradation caused by oil exploration in the region.
They asked Adeola to pursue the establishment of a commission to address developmental issues in the South-West instead of seeking to make Lagos and others members of NDDC.
Urhoghide said: “I am not particularly against the sponsor of this bill. I just believe that the bill should be properly posited. Today, what each state gets from the 13 per cent derivation is a function of production.
“Today, Gombe is fast becoming a host community, Bauchi and some other states. But to say these states belong to Niger Delta is not possible.
“If the idea is you want to share out of the 13 per cent derivation, they are at will as long as they produce oil but to say they must belong to Niger Delta, it makes mockery of the idea in the creation of NDDC.”
On his part, Omo-Agege said: “We look forward to the day when indeed all states in Nigeria will not only produce oil but produce one form of mineral resource or the other.
“What this lead debate clearly shows is that my colleague from Lagos is a classic meddlesome interloper. The NDDC is a regional development commission. We must draw a distinction between the NDDC and the oil and mineral producing commission.”
On his part, Sekibo said: “I congratulate these states where my friend said they have discovered oil. What I don’t know is that whether the oil is in commercial quantity and they are exploring them for sale and the money going to Nigerian coffers. That one, he has not expatiated on that one.
“Are they exploring oil, are they refining oil in these places and has the oil caused any devastation in that environment? The purpose of the NDDC is not just because they found oil there, it is because the place has been so devastated and there is a need to see how they can remedy the place and because that place is so backward.
“Each time there is a law to support a backward people, to support people who are suffering, Nigerians will come out after a couple of years to dampen the strength of that law.
“There is nothing wrong that they are given their 13 per cent derivation, that is if funds from those oil are now in the US, they are exploring them, are they?”
Eventually, Senate President, Ahmad Lawan then referred the bill to the Peter Nwaoboshi (APC, Delta North) for further legislative action and report at plenary in four weeks.
