A bill to include Anambra State as member of the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, failed at the Senate on Wednesday.
The bill, which was sponsored by Senator Tony Nwoye, Anambra North, sought inclusion of Anambra State through amendment of the Act that established the NDDC.
The proposed legislation was titled ‘A Bill for an Act to amend the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, to make provision for inclusion of Anambra State as one of the member states and for other related matters’.
The sponsor of the bill, who was armed with documents reflecting that Anambra has been a beneficiary of 13 per cent derivation since 2021, said, the state will further benefit from the mandate of the NDDC if it is included in the envisaged amendment of the Act.
However, his presentation drew curiosity when he said the neighbouring Kogi State has not started receiving 13 per cent derivation for its oil deposits.
Senator Jibrin Isah, Kogi East, urged the Anambra lawmaker to limit his argument to his state, saying, “Kogi has started receiving oil derivation since 2022.”
Reacting, the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, suggested an amendment that would have accommodated other states, since Kogi is now an oil producing state, and other states that may have oil in future.
On Senator Nwoye’s insistence that Kogi was yet to receive 13 per cent oil derivative, arguing that the oil wells being claimed by Kogi State belong to Anambra, Akpabio advised that the bill be stepped down or be subjected to votes.
He noted that the Senate should not be dragged into boundary issues.
Accordingly, the bill was rejected after it was put to voice vote by the Senate President.
