The Senate yesterday passed the N315.8 billion 2013 Budget of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC).
The Deputy Senate President, Chief Ike Ekweremadu, who presided over the plenary session, decried the continuous late presentation of the budget by the commission and its subsequent late passage.
He advised the NDDC to ensure that it submitted its budget early enough to enhance quick passage and to enable implementing agencies to execute the budget in time.
Meanwhile, the Senate, yesterday in Abuja, approved President Goodluck Jonathan’s request to extend the state of emergency imposed on Adamawa, Borno and Yobe States, for another six months.
The Senate Leader, Victor Ndoma-Egba (PDP-Cross River), had moved the motion entitled: “Request for Extension of State of Emergency.”
He recalled that the Senate passed a resolution on May 21, following which the President declared the state of emergency. This was in order to curb militant insurgency and restore peace in the three states.
Ndoma-Egba said the approval of the extension was based on the same terms and conditions that were earlier approved and gazetted.
The Senators invited service chiefs and the Supervising Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mrs Viola Onwuleri, to further brief the upper chamber on the impact the state of emergency had had on the three states.
The extension of State of Emergency in Adamawa, Borno and Yobe states by President Goodluck Jonathan was greeted with mixed feeling by the people of Adamawa.
President Goodluck Jonathan on November 6 wrote to the National Assembly seeking its approval to extend the emergency rule imposed on the three states experiencing the activities of insurgents.
The letter followed the expiration of the six months emergency rule earlier declared in the states in May.
Buba Ardo, a resident of Mubi said that he was happy with the return of peace to the area.
He, however, said he would want to see the emergency rule lifted for so that people, particularly the border communities, could go about their daily activities.
“I am not happy with the proposed extension of state of emergency, it should be removed while the army should remain to patrol the area,” Ardo said.
Also speaking, the Adamawa Secretary of Jamatul Nasril Islam (JNI), Alhaji Gambo Jika, said he was delighted that peace had returned to the state.
“As far as we are concerned in Adamawa, things have normalised except if there are certain things the security agencies see that we cannot see,” Jika said.
Also speaking in the same vein, Mallam Abdullahi Damare, Coordinator of North East Interfaith Mediation Centre, said it was high time the emergency rule was lifted.
He said the security situation in the state had improved to the extent that the emergency rule was no longer necessary.
The Adamawa Chairman of Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Rev. Moses Taparki, also lauded the return of peace and normalcy in the state.
He, however, said it was the duty of the security agencies to decide if things were normal enough to lift the emergency rule.
“If they (security) feel the situation has improve to warrant the removal of the state of emergency they should go ahead to do it but if they feel otherwise so be it”, Taparki said.
Meanwhile, the Director Press Affairs to Gov. Murtala Nyako, Mallam Ahmed Sajoh, has said the Adamawa government was not in support of the extension of the emergency rule.
He said rather than a blanket extension, the security agencies should consider the security situation on state-by-state basis.