NASS to Amend HYPADEC Bill

The National Assembly has again commenced amendment to the establishment of the Hydro Power Producing Areas Development Commission (HYPPADEC) bill, the second of such amendments within four years.

The new amendment is consequent upon the discovery that there are some lapses in the old bill which has made it non implementable today, the Senator representing Niger-South Senatorial District at the National Assembly, Abuja, Senator . David Umaru has said.

He said one of the problems found in the bill was that the amount to be contributed for the funding of the commission by GENCOS and Discos which was put at 30percent  of their monthly income..

He stated further that the immediate past f President, Dr.  Goodluck Ebele Jonathan had assented to the first bill sponsored by late Senator Dahiru Awaisu Kuta before but it was returned to the National Assembly in 2014 for the first amendment to be carried out.

HYPPADEC which is expected to take care of communities in the downstream areas of the three hydro electric dams in the country; Kainji, Jebba and Shiroro but the commission did not however see the light of the day before the expiration of the mandate of that administration.

It could  also be recalled that N75 million was budgeted in the 2016 financial estimate by President Mohammed Buhari for the take off of the commission before the discovery of new lapses in the bill.
Senator David Umaru who has taken over the sponsorship of the bill along with others told journalists in Minna that all the discrepancies in the bill have been corrected while the new law had passed through the second reading in the upper chamber of the national assembly.

Stakeholders in the benefitting states of; Niger, Kogi, Kwara, Kebbi have agreed on the composition of members of the commission, Umaru said, adding that, “The HYPPADEC bill is problematic, but I can tell you that there is no problem with the law in itself but we have just discovered so many things that need to be amended”.

Senator Umaru further explained that, contributions by the GENCOS and the DISCOS in the amended bill has now been put at 10% of their monthly income while the Federal government will provide the balance and, “the Governors of the benefiting states have met and have promised to support efforts made by the senators to ensure the realization of the project”.