The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Delta Assembly

  • Delta Assembly passes Public Defender Bill

    The Delta House of Assembly on Wednesday passed the State Office of the Public Defender Bill.

    The passage of the bill in Asaba during plenary followed a motion by the Majority Leader, Mr Tim Owhefere and seconded by Mrs Erhiatake Ibori-Suenu, representing Ethiope West constituency in the Assembly.

    At the committee of the whole chaired by the Speaker of the Assembly, Chief Sheriff Oborevwori, the report of the House Committee on Rules, Business, Legal and Judicial matters on the bill was considered clause by clause and section by section.

    The speaker, while reporting progress made by the committee of the whole, said the various clauses were amended following motions by some members and thanked them for their contributions.

    Consequently, the majority leader moved a motion for the third reading and the passage of the bill.

    The bill intended to provide legal representation for indigent persons through the office of the public defender when created.

    Also at plenary on Wednesday, the Delta state Public Private Property Protection Bill passed the second reading.

    Presenting the bill for second reading, Owhefere said that it sought to prohibit and abolish unwarranted harassment of property developers in the state under the disguise of collecting development levy popularly known as “deve’’.

    He said that the tradition of collecting “deve’’ by youths had continued in various communities, saying that it has the tendency of driving away potential investors from the state.

    Owhefere noted that section 3 Sub Section 1 of the proposed law prohibits any forceful entry into any property with the view of denying the owner of the ownership of such property, and attracts seven years jail term with an option of N500,000 as fine.

    He said that it has become so embarrassing to the extent that youths harass property developers from the point of purchase of land to the different stages of construction demanding various sums of money.

    Owhefere said the proposed law when passed would help checkmate such illegal levies.

    He said the bill aims at enhancing development of the state without any form of harassment of developers.

    Supporting the bill, the Chief Whip of the Assembly, Mrs Pat Ajudua said it was people oriented and would help to fast-track development in the state.

    Ajudua also said that the bill when passed would help to create an atmosphere of peace.

    Speaking against the bill, the member representing Ughelli constituency, Mr Reuben Izeze noted that it violated all known lawmaking precedence in the assembly.

    He said that the assembly already has a similar bill with the same content before it.

    Consequently, the speaker set up an eight-man ad hoc committee to analyse and harmonise the two other bills, which were already before the assembly.

    Members of the ad hoc committee are: Mrs Pat Ajudua as chairman, Mr Johnson Erijo, Mr Oboro Preyor, Mrs Orezi Esiovo, Mr Anthony Elekeokwuri and Mr Peter Uviejitobor as members.

    The committee has one week to report back to the assembly. (NAN)

  • Catholics church adopts candidate for Delta Assembly seat

    The Warri Diocese of the Catholic Church in Delta State has said it will play a active role in 2019.

    Chairman of the Warri Diocesan Politics Commission, Rev Chris Ekabo, who spoke yesterday, said the church would adopt a Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chieftain, Chief Felix Anirah, for the House of Assembly, to represent Sapele.

    Ekabo noted that the church decided to be active, promising that if Anirah agrees to run, the church will mobilise to buy his nomination form.

    He urged Christians to elect leaders, who will be responsive and be responsible to the people, stressing that Anirah stands out because he is accessible to the people.

    Speaking on the church’s endorsement of Anirah, he said: “I am the chairman of Warri Diocesan Politics Commission and it is my responsibility to charge Catholics to vote and be voted.

    “It is a civic responsibility that does not go against our Catholic ethics and ethos. The Catholics from Sapele extraction are too aloof from elective politics. This is why I forcefully asked him to get involved and run for 2019 Delta State House of Assembly”, he said.

     

  • Delta Assembly Speaker impeached, suspended

    Delta Assembly Speaker impeached, suspended

    Members of the Delta State House of Assembly on Thursday impeached the Speaker of the House, Chief Monday Igbuya, over alleged financial misappropriation and highhandedness.

    The impeached Speaker was also suspended for three months by the lawmakers.

    Sources in the Assembly said Igbuya was impeached because of his support for Governor Ifeanyi Okowa’s second term bid.

    Many lawmakers, according to the sources, are uncomfortable with the Speaker’s open campaign for Okowa.

    “Such open campaign portrays the legislature as not independent,” they added.

    Igbuya has since been replaced by a member of the House from Okpe Constituency, Chief Sheriff Oborevwori.

     

  • Delta female lawmaker dies

    The Speaker of the Delta State House of Assembly, Chief Monday Igbuya, on Wednesday night announced the death of one of its long-serving members, Mrs. Omawumi Udoh.

    Udoh represented Warri south I constituency in the state Assembly.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports she died at a London hospital after a protracted illness.

    In a statement signed by Igbuya’s Chief Press secretary, Mr. Henry Ebireri, the speaker described the late Udoh as “a dogged fighter, grassroots woman and leader.

    “I wish to convey to you the deepest condolence of the Delta House of Assembly in an emotion laden voice. It is really hard to believe.’’

    The speaker also described Udoh as an extra ordinary woman, who demonstrated a life of service, love, compassion and excellence to her family, community and the state,

    Udoh, who was born in 1960, became a member of the state House of Assembly in 2003, on the platform of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP).

     

  • Alleged child trafficking: Delta Assembly dismisses petition against ministry

    The Delta House of Assembly on Wednesday dismissed a petition on an alleged child trafficking and gross violation of the Child Rights Law brought before it by Mr Ighorhiowumu Aghogho against the state Ministry of Women Affairs.

    The Assembly dismissed the petition which accused the ministry of gross violations of the law for lack of merit.

    The petition was rejected sequel to a report presented by the Chairman, House Committee on Public Petitions, Mrs Orezi Esiovo, during the plenary.

    Esiovo noted that the petitioner, Aghogho who is the proprietor of Explosive Academy Hope Independent School in Abraka, Ethiope East Local Government Area of the state had appealed to the state House of Assembly to investigate the allegations.

    Esiovo said that the petitioner said he observed a continuous and deliberate abuse of the Child Rights Law by the ministry since June 2015 when he applied to the ministry for approval to allow him operate a correctional facility institution for children beyond parental control and exploited children in the state.

    She said that the committee in carrying out the investigation invited the state Commissioner for Women Affairs, Mrs Omatsola Williams, who represented the ministry.

    According to Esiovo, the commissioner told the committee that all the allegations were intended to undermine the efforts of the ministry and the present administration.

    Esiovo also said that the commissioner informed the committee that the ministry had never indulged in any form of child trafficking and illegal adoptions of children as alleged by the petitioner.

    She also said that the commissioner stressed that the ministry had never promoted any child labour rather than embarking on enlightenment programmes such as “Children’s Day celebration’’ and “Day of the African Child’’, among others.

    Esiovo said that the committee in its findings observed that the petitioner was not able to prove his allegations and therefore recommended that the petition be dismissed for lack of merit.

    Consequently, the Majority Leader of the House, Mr Tim Owhefere, moved a motion for the consideration of the report which was unanimously adopted by the House.

  • Delta Assembly approves N10b loan for Okowa

    Delta Assembly approves N10b loan for Okowa

    the Delta State House of Assembly has approved Governor Ifeanyi Okowa’s request for the restructuring of existing loan facilities.

    The Legislature approved the N10 billion loan from Zenith Bank Plc.

    In a letter yesterday to the Assembly, Okowa reminded the House of Assembly that during its inauguration on May 29, his administration met a huge bank and capital market debt of about N96.62 billion with a scheduled monthly repayment of N4.6 billion.

    The governor said there was another monthly repayment of Delta State Infrastructure Development Bond of N50 billion obtained by the former administration in 2011.

    He said the state had reached an unsustainable level of indebtedness, which was worsened by declining oil prices and low receipts from the Federation Account.

    Okowa noted that in a bid to free the resources for other development purposes, his administration resorted to restructuring existing loan facilities.

    The governor said the restructuring of the existing facility and obtaining N10 billion loan was consented to in principle, subject to the approval of the House of Assembly.

    According to him, the new approach would mitigate the harsh impact of the liquidity crisis in the state, reduce the time lag in the payment of salaries, pensions and overhead costs and ensure the take-off of some key projects.

    Okowa said the letter was meant to solicit the Assembly’s approval, adding that he would be glad to have its urgent consideration.

    The request was approved following a motion by Majority Leader Tim Owhefere and seconded by Samuel Mariere, representing Ughelli North I.

    The motion was unanimously adopted.

  • Delta Assembly Commission sacks 26

    The Delta State House of Assembly Commission has sacked 26 employees for certificate forgery.

    Its Chairman, Mrs. Josephine Kachikwu, said the dismissal was done after a verification and re-verification exercise carried out by a firm of auditors.

    She said: “The firm has submitted its report and every case was subjected to further re-verification to remove any possible error and 26 employees were dismissed for parading fake certificates; two are on interdiction, while pending cases are about 20.”

    The chairman said the decision would go “down in history as the most agonising decision by the commission”.

  • Delta Assembly hailed

    A group, G9 Delta Alliance (GDA), has hailed the decision by the Delta State House of Assembly to override Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan’s veto on death penalty for kidnappers.

    It described the lawmakers’ action as “patriotic, a tonic for a safer Delta State and essentially, a vote against criminality.”

    Twenty six of the 29 lawmakers voted to pass the bill into law.

    Section 100 (5) of the 1999 Constitution empowers the House to override a governor’s veto by a two-third majority vote.

    A statement by the GDA Chancellor, Edward Dibiana, reads: “The Assembly, by taking this step, is not only making a bold statement against kidnapping but also protecting and preserving the dignity of the victims.

    The GDA urged the Delta State Government to “work out a partnership between security agencies and communities to develop a protection mechanism to encourage community intelligence gathering system.”