ABUJA – The Senate on Thursday gave nod to the clamour for a law to establish the North Central Development Commission (NCDC).

Calls for the establishment of the Commission is to give equity to the North Central zone following the idea of similar commissions in the Northeast, the Niger Delta, the Southeast and the Southwest respectively.

The Bill for the establishment of the commission was sponsored by the Senate Minority Leader, Senator Abba Moro representing Benue South Senatorial District.

The bill which earlier passed First and Second Readings in the 10th Assembly suffered a lack of presidential assent before the expiration of Presidential Muhammad Buhari’s administration.

A statement written by the media aide to Senator Moro, Emmanuel Eche’Ofun John, to compliment debate and passage of the Bill, said that the lawmaker had argued that “the commission, when established would be saddled with the responsibility of receiving and managing funds from the federal government and donors for the resettlement, rehabilitation, integration and reconstruction of roads, houses and business premises of victims of flood and farmers/herders clashes, communal clashes, construction of large format drainage systems, dredging of rivers Niger and Benue to control flood and incidental matters, as well as tackling the menace of poverty, illiteracy and other related environmental or developmental challenges facing the North Central Nigeria.”

The passage of the bill followed adoption of the report of the Senate Committee on Special Duties submitted during plenary.

The Deputy Senate President, Senator Barau Jibrin, expressed optimism that President Bola Tinubu would assent to the bill for the overall development of North Central Nigeria, which comprises Kogi, Niger, Benue, Kwara, Plateau, Nasarawa and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.