The Senate Committee on Regional Development has expressed dissatisfaction over the spending of N943 million on allowances for members of the Governing Board of the North-West Development Commission (NWDC).

President Bola Tinubu inaugurated the board on February 11, 2025.

However, several months later, the commission has yet to appoint executive directors and other key officials, even though N943 million has already been spent on board members’ allowances.

A reported internal crisis linked to a top government official has also unsettled the commission, preventing it from effectively carrying out its mandate.

The issues came to light on Tuesday during an investigative hearing by the committee, as senators questioned the failure to appoint key executive directors to date.

Among the six regional development commissions established by the National Assembly, the NWDC remains the only one without the necessary executive appointments.

The Minister of State for Regional Development, Alhaji Uba Maigari Ahmadu, while addressing the lawmakers’ concerns, traced the internal crisis partly to office accommodation challenges. He said the office was initially provided by private individuals, which eventually led to disagreements over the location of the commission’s headquarters.

However, he said the situation was being resolved after the Kano State Government provided office space for the commission’s operations.

The minister said, “The North West Development Commission is the only commission that does not yet have executive directors. Every other regional commission has its full management structure in place.

“Something urgent must be done for the commission to function effectively.”

According to him, without executive directors, the commission’s governance structure would remain weak, hindering its full take-off.

He noted that while office accommodation sparked controversy over the NWDC headquarters in Kano, other states such as Oyo, Enugu and Nasarawa, which host other regional development commissions, commenced operations without similar challenges.

However, senators were even more concerned about the huge spending on board allowances despite the commission not yet taking off or delivering on its mandate.

The committee was particularly alarmed by documents showing that out of the N1.19 billion spent by the commission, N943 million went to allowances for members of the Governing Board, representing nearly 79 per cent of the expenditure under that subhead.

Senators described the figure as disturbing and inconsistent with the purpose for which the commission was established, namely to bring development closer to the people of the North-West and address pressing challenges, especially insecurity and infrastructure deficits.

However, the Chairman of the Governing Board, Abdullahi Lawal, told lawmakers that the Act establishing the commission provided legal backing for the allowances and other related expenses.

Lawal explained that the board had held seven meetings—five regular and two emergency sessions—during which it passed 63 resolutions aimed at putting in place the institutional and policy framework for the commission.

He also said the board approved standing orders, operational guidelines, committee structures, budget frameworks and fund allocation principles for the seven North-West states covered by the commission.

According to him, the activities and sitting allowances are lawful governance expenses under the commission’s establishing Act.

He, however, drew a distinction between the approval of expenditure and the actual disbursement of funds. He said that while the board approved legitimate governance expenses, responsibility for processing payments rested with the commission’s management, particularly the Managing Director and finance officials.

Nonetheless, senators insisted that the ministry must take responsibility for the failure to complete the commission’s management structure, especially the appointment of executive directors. They also raised concerns over delays in staff recruitment and the implementation of the commission’s capital budget, despite approvals reportedly granted since February.

They stressed that the commission was created to address development deficits and insecurity in the region and should not be bogged down by administrative disputes and governance lapses.

The session later went into a closed-door meeting. (Nigerian Tribune)