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Says absence of executive directors crippling operations
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The Senate Committee on Regional Development on Tuesday raised serious concerns over the operations of the North West Development Commission (NWDC), questioning the payment of about N943 million as board allowances amid the commission’s lingering leadership crisis and slow take-off.
Speaking at an investigative session with officials of the commission and the Federal Ministry of Regional Development, lawmakers also faulted the continued absence of executive directors, saying it is the only development agency operating without a full management structure despite being among the first established by an Act of the National Assembly.
In his interaction with the committee, the Minister of State for Regional Development, Alhaji Uba Ahmadu, admitted that the commission had been hampered by internal disagreements, particularly over the location of its headquarters in Kano.
He explained that the NWDC initially operated from offices donated by private organisations, but disagreements between the board and management over which facility should serve as the commission’s headquarters fuelled a prolonged crisis.
According to him, the Kano State Government has now donated a fully furnished office complex, operational vehicles and a parcel of land to the commission.
He disclosed that the ministry, the board and the management jointly took over the new facility last week and directed the closure of all other offices to end the dispute.
Ahmadu, however, told lawmakers that the commission’s greatest challenge remains the non-appointment of executive directors.
“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 has to be done urgently so that the commission can function effectively,” he said.
The minister said the vacuum had weakened the commission’s administrative structure and contributed to the operational difficulties that have trailed its inauguration.
He added that, unlike the situation in Kano, other regional commissions received office accommodation from host state governments in Enugu, Oyo and Nasarawa without controversy.
The committee also scrutinised the commission’s financial records, expressing shock that documents before it showed that N943 million out of the N1.19 billion spent by the commission went to allowances for members of the governing board.
It described the expenditure, representing about 79 per cent of the amount spent under the relevant subhead, as inconsistent with the commission’s mandate to tackle infrastructure deficits and insecurity across the North West.
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Some senators also questioned claims by the board that it lacked adequate funding while simultaneously embarking on visits to governors and other stakeholders.
They specifically queried the payment of Duty Tour Allowance (DTA), air tickets, local transportation and other logistics to the Managing Director for a visit to the Governor of Kano State, despite the commission’s headquarters being located in Kano.
Responding, the Chairman of the Governing Board, Professor Abdullahi Ma’aji, defended the board’s expenditures, insisting they were authorised under the North West Development Commission Act, 2024.
He said the board had held seven meetings, comprising five regular and two emergency sessions, during which it adopted 63 resolutions to establish the commission’s governance and operational framework.
According to him, the board approved standing orders, operational guidelines, committee structures, budget frameworks and principles for allocating funds among the seven North West states.
Ma’aji maintained that committee activities and sitting allowances were legitimate governance expenses provided for by law.
He, however, distinguished between approving expenditures and making payments, explaining that while the board authorised legitimate expenses, actual disbursement rested with the commission’s management, particularly the Managing Director and finance department.
The board chairman also accused the management of failing to implement several board resolutions, citing poor communication and delays in executing key decisions as factors slowing the commission’s take-off.
Several senators, however, maintained that the Federal Ministry of Regional Development must accept responsibility for the failure to complete the commission’s management structure through the appointment of executive directors.
They warned that the continued leadership vacuum, delayed staff recruitment and slow implementation of capital projects were undermining the objectives for which the commission was created.
The lawmakers stressed that the NWDC was established to accelerate development and address insecurity across the North West and should not be distracted by administrative disputes and governance lapses.
The committee later proceeded into a closed-door executive session to receive further explanations from the ministry and the commission’s officials.
