Bill to establish South West Development Commission introduced in Senate

A bill seeking the establishment of the South West Development Commission has been formally introduced in the Nigerian Senate.

The bill, sponsored by Senator Olugbenga Ashafa, a lawmaker representing Lagos East was read for the first time during Wednesday’s plenary.

It is titled, South West Development Commission (Establishment, etc) Bill, 2018 (SB. 718).

The move to establish South West Development Commission came a week after the Senate passed the South East Development Commission Bill 2018.

Also, last week, Senator Jibrin Barau from Kano, introduced the North West Development Commission Bill 2018 which was read the first time on the floor of the Senate.

If passed by the Senate and signed into law along with the South East Development Commission Bill, this would bring to five the number of regional interventionist agencies in the country.

Already in existence is the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) and the North East Development Commission (NEDC), whose establishment bill received presidential assent in 2017.

Two other bills passed first reading on the floor of the Senate.

One of them is a bill for an Act to repeal Primary Health Care Development Act 2018 sponsored Senator Aliyu Wammakko.