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Tag: Femi Gbajabiamila

  • House keeps mum over Buhari’s rejection of Electoral Act Amendment Bill

    The House of Representatives refused to debate the refusal of President Muhammadu Buhari to sign into law for the fourth time the Electoral Act, 2010 Amendment Bill.

    Before the floor could degenerate into a rowdy session on Tuesday, following the reading of the President’s letter conveying his rejection of the Bill, Speaker Yakubu Dogara said in line with House rules, the letter would not be considered on the day it was read but slated for another legislative day.

    President Buhari, in the letter dated 6th December, 2018 said he declined assent to the Bill as a result of the likely confusion the new law would create for the process of the 2019 general election.

    While pointing out some other errors in the document, the President included a provison if he must sign the bill into law that the clause that the law becomes operational after the 2019 election be inserted.

    As the Speaker concluded reading the letter, Ali Madaki, (PDP, Kano) raised a point order saying  there was an urgent need for the House to debate the President’s communication because of its importance to the future of the country.

    “Mr. Speaker, you have just read a very important letter. What we want is free, fair and credible election. Mr. President refusing to assent to the Electoral Act Amendment Bill shows clearly what he wants to do.

    “The whole world is watching. Everybody is watching…,” he said before being shut down by a counter point of order from the House Leader Femi Gbajabiamila.

    Read Also: Buhari on climate change

    Gbajabiamila said no House rule supports Madaki’s suggestion that the matter be debated immediately because of it’s importance.

    “We have never, by precedence; by custom and tradition, we have never debated a letter, which is by way of information.

    “If there is the need to debate the president’s letter, we will table on the order paper for debate. Several letters have been written by several presidents before.

    “It never happened. If you want to debate the letter, place it on the order paper. We are fully ready to debate it,” Gbajabiamila said.

    At this point, the Speaker ruled and stepped down the matter for another legislative day.

    He said, no matter how urgent, House rules dictate that such matters are scheduled for another legislative day for consideration.

    “We have a provision in our rules that guides this kind of communication and I will advise that we follow the rules.

    “So, I think this matter should be laid to rest,” he said.

     

  • Tinubu, Gbajabiamila, Akiolu grace Muniru Muse Cup finals

    The Oba of Lagos, HRM. Oba Rilwan Akiolu, CFR; Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila, Majority Leader, Federal House of Representatives and representative of Lagos-Central Senatorial District in the Senate, Oluremi Tinubu, OON, were among the dignitaries present at the finals of the 8th edition of the Muniru Muse Under-12 and Under-15 boys and girls football Championship held at the Campos Mini Stadium, Lagos Island on Sunday, 19th August, 2017.
    The competition sponsored by Senator Tinubu and organised by the Lagos State Grassroots Soccer Association, saw Rivers FC of Yaba defeat Latoyam FC of Coker Aguda 3-2 in the final of the U-15 Boys category, while Rasheedat Adu Queens of Iru beat Golden swan FC of Lagos Island to emerge U-12 girls’ champions.
    Both winners in the male and female categories pocketed the star prize of N250, 000 and a giant trophy each for their impressive outing, while the runners-up pocketed the sum of N150, 000 each for their efforts. Third-placed teams were also rewarded with N100, 000 cash prize.
    Senator Oluremi Tinubu who took the mantle of running the competition from Senator Muniru Muse, said that the competition is aimed at producing young and wonderful athletes who will make the state and the country proud.
    “I don’t really like to watch football because I want everybody to win. But this is an avenue for families to come out and have a good time. Every year people keep coming and we keep making sure that they are well entertained, they have lunch thanks to Honeywell for all the noodles and egg. So I’m so excited.
    “The children have always been neglected and this competition is to get young people into the game.
    “This competition was not initiated by me, it was initiated by my predecessor. So I saw that it is good and I started working on it and continued with the name.
    The name doesn’t really matter to me, but the game has to continue and I’m glad he is here we are alive and we give glory to God.
    “The young ones should keep giving their best, they are all talented youths, and every youth that is not playing soccer today should try to discover their talents. I believe that the sky will be the limit for them,” Senator Tinubu said.
    Speaking on behalf of the Chairmen of Lagos Central Senatorial District, Chairman Lagos Island East LCDA, Honourable Kamal Bashua Salaudeen commended the wife of the former Lagos State First Lady for her commitment towards the sponsorship of the annual competition which has continued to produce talents for both local and national teams.
    Other dignitaries present at the finals include Chief Kessington Adebutu, CON (baba Ijebu) ably represented by Chief Adeniyi Williams; Senator Muniru Muse; Chief Adeniyi Williams representing Chief Kessington Adebutu, CON (baba Ijebu); a representative of Chairman, FBN Holdings Plc. and Honeywell Group Limited, Oba Otudeko (CFR) and State APC Chairman, Hon. Tunde Balogun amongst others.

  • INEC budget: It’s unfortunate NASS failed to reconvene – APC lawmakers

    Leaders of the All Progressives Congress ( APC ) in the National Assembly said on Tuesday the lawmakers’ failure to reconvene for debate on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) 2019 election budget would spark constitutional crisis in the country

    Speaking at a meeting with the members of the National Working Committee of the party in Abuja, the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yussuf Lasun, Senate Leader, Ahmed Lawan and the Majority Leader in the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, said presiding officers must reconvene the National Assembly immediately to avoid any form of sabotage for the party.

    However, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, was absent at the meeting.

    Lasun said it was unfortunate that the National Assembly could not reconvene on Tuesday as earlier agreed by the presiding officers.

    He said: “I am not particularly happy that we are not able to reconvene the National Assembly today (Tuesday) because we decided few days back that we are going to seat and consider those items that are very important and may likely hamper the function of INEC and other programs without which the implementation of the capital component of the 2018 budget would have been slightly difficult.”

    Lawan said the APC Senate Caucus and the House Caucus would continue working towards averting constitutional crisis by ensuring that the National Assembly reconvened and pass the INEC budget.

     

  • Stakeholders regroup to rescue mechanic vocation

    Owing to lack of regular training and the developments in automobile technology, auto mechanics in Nigeria are increasingly falling by the way-side. To this end, stakeholders recently partnered with Femi Gbajabiamila, Majority Leader, House of Representatives. Medinat Kanabe reports

    AKEEM (not real name) is a mechanic with long years of experience, preceding the advent of the latest fifth generation vehicles. Recently a car was brought to his workshop and with great enthusiasm and eagerness to get to work, he opened the bonnet of the car, only to let out a loud scream. When asked what the problem was, he said “Where will I put my hand here?” This is because the spectacle that stared back at him was different from what he had been used to.

    The above story was shared by Emmanuel Olorode, one of the Directors, MAGBEN Automotive Technology, while speaking to The Nation during a training session for mechanics and distribution of computerised mechanical tools to 52 mechanics in Surulere, Lagos, by Femi, Gbajabiamila, Majority Leader, Federal House of Assembly.

    Olorode however said what the mechanic saw was simpler than what he was used to, just that he wasn’t abreast of latest developments in automobile technology and therefore wasn’t informed, and confused.

    “Before now, what mechanics do is guesswork. When you take your car to them, they ask you what the problem is and as you begin to narrate, they begin to guess. But today, there is an artificial intelligence in cars; cars communicate with people through the instrument cluster.

    “It is just for you to have the medium to understand what the car is telling you, which is a scanner. What you do is to plug your scanner in and you will be able to interpret what the car is saying and the scanner will also tell you where you should go and what you need to do in the car. This makes life much easier for them but because they don’t have this knowledge, a lot of them have run away from the profession. They are now into other jobs like commercial driving or commercial motorcycle riding; they have gone out of business.”

    To this effect, Olorode said Gbajabiamila has asked that the mechanics be given a handheld scanner which can access 60% of what is wrong with a car. “It will not tell them where to go but they will know what is wrong which is the basic thing. After they have solved the problem, they will use the scanner again to erase the fault so that the car can receive the information that it has been fixed.”

    Explaining why his organisation took interest in training mechanics, he said it is because they stand the risk of becoming obsolete and out of job. And the consequence of that, he said, is that “we will only have foreigners maintaining our cars in Nigeria. Presently we have foreigners, especially Lebanese that run and maintain automotive workshop and that is so because our people are not educated.

    “Cars have changed, it has evolved in so many ways that if you are not informed, you will fizzle out. We have been doing this for a while and we have trained more than 1,200 mechanics.”

    On his part, Gbajabiamila said anyone who underestimates the power of a mechanic either did not go to school or does not understand economics. “The most important part of any economy in the world is transportation. Without transportation, there will be no economy; how do you move your goods, how do you move yourselves? This is why most countries develop their road networks, for ease of movement of people and goods from one place to another.

    “But when you develop those things, what happens to the machines that ply the routes; they have to be maintained by mechanics.”

    He noted that the mechanic work is such that “there has to be continuous training to meet up.”

    Also speaking at the event, Chairman Board of Trustees, Motor Mechanics and Technicians Association of Nigeria, MOMTAN, Apagun Samuel Olushola spoke on sincerity.

    He said “The problem of lack of sincerity is why we have a lot of workshops and symposium for the mechanics. We talk to them about being sincere and tell them that they are rich, if they are sincere because you cannot put smiles on a sad person’s face and the person will forget you.”

    On the menace of unprofessional mechanics flooding the space and damaging people’s cars, he said it is the duty of the government to weed them off the road. “The only way they can be differentiated is with the identity cards of any of the two associations – Motor Mechanics and Technicians Association of Nigeria, MOMTAN and Nigerian Automobile Technician Association, NATAN.

    Also representing MAGBEN, seminar coordinator, Olugbenga Agbana said at the end of the day, they would be handing over some tools to the mechanics, which have all been paid for by Gbajabiamila.

    “We will teach them how to operate the tools and give them some kind of assistance, whenever they get to a dead end.”

    He added that the vision is to make sure everyone in the automobile industry in Nigeria is brought to level.

    One of the participants, Chairman Alhaji Masha Mechanic Village, Surulere, Victor Itoriola Ishola, who has been on the job since 1975, said the programme is very important, as it allows for networking and exchange of ideas. “I have learnt that if I cannot fix a vehicle, I should call someone who can and get the work done instead of trying my hands on different things and damaging the vehicle more.”

  • House of Reps have more or less endorsed Oshiomole – Gbajabiamila

    Majority Leader of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila disclosed today that the House of Representatives have endorsed the former Governor of Edo state, Comrade Adams Oshiomole as the next National Chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress ( APC ).

    Adams Oshiomole

    Gbajabiamila who took to his twitter handle in the early hours of today said:

    “We sat down for over two hours with Comrade Oshiomole and had a heart-to-heart discussion and we are all on the same page.

    “As a result of that solicitation, we as the @OfficialAPCNg caucus in the House of Representatives believe in him. We have more or less endorsed him”.

    Oshiomole who will most likely be taking over from Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, will be saddled with the singular and arduous task of bringing cohesion and repositioning to the APC nationwide.

  • 2019: Lagos lawmakers rally support for Gbajabiamila

    Some members of the House of Representatives from Lagos State have commended the leadership of the Leader of House of Representatives, Mr Femi Gbajabiamila at national, state and constituency levels since his election into the house in 2003 .

    The All Progressives Congress ( APC ) lawmakers spoke in turns at the “Surulere General Assembly’’ on Thursday night.

    They said that they would support his bid to seek re-election to serve his people through quality representation.

    They appealed to residents of Gbajabiamila’s constituency to also support him in his bid to seek re-election.

    The newsmen reports that Gbajabiamila has been representing Surulere 1 Federal Constituency in the green chamber of the National Assembly since 2003.

    The lawmakers are: Messrs Jide Jimoh ( Yaba Fed. Constituency ), Ayo Joseph ( Apapa ), Rotimi Agunsoye ( Kosofe ) Yusuf Ayinla ( Mushin 2 ), and Olaitan Nurudeen ( Ifako-Ijaiye ).

    Mr JIde Jimoh described Gbajabiamila as an asset to the House of Representatives, who he said, had acquitted himself remarkably well as a legislator.

    He said the House Leader had initiated many development-oriented bills in the house and contributed robustly to debates in its sessions.

    Jimoh said Gbajabiamila served his people selflessly, urging residents of Surulere to unite and support him for another term.

    “We are here today to thank Surulere for giving to the house an impactful legislator like Hon.Gbajabiamila.

    “He has been an asset to the house with his great presentation of issues and robust contributions to sessions.

    “We are proud of him and we want you, his constituents to unite and support his bid to seek re-election,” he said.
    Jimoh said that Gbajabiamila was already a principal officer of the house and that replacing him with someone else at this point would not give much benefit to the constituency and the state.

    Also speaking, Hon, Ayo Joseph said lawmaking was about experience, passion and service.

    He said that Gbajabiamila’s wealth of experience as a member of the House was a great asset not only to the National Assembly but also to the nation.

    He urged residents of Surulere to speak with one voice and support the House Leader for another term to “continue the good work he has been doing”.

    Mr Rotimi Agunsoye said the hallmark of leadership was to lead well and see what others could not see.

    He said Gbajabiamila had demonstrated exemplary leadership and had impacted positively on his constituents.

    Agunsoye said the House Leader was a legislator per excellence who commanded the respect of house members with his erudite presentation of issues.

    “When Gbajabiamila speaks others listen. Every one of us loves to listen to him in the house.

    “He is a selfless leader and a legislator per excellence. I want the residents of Surulere to re-nominate this gentleman to keep the flag flying,” he said.

    Also, Mr Olaitan Nurudeen said Gbajabiamila was a rallying point for Lagos lawmakers in the house.

    He added that the lawmaker was a blessing not only to Surulere but to the state, urging his constituent members to support him for another term.

    Similarly, Mr Yusuf Ayinla also commended Gbajabiamila for what he called his achievements in the house, saying he deserved another term for his great performance.

    The Secretary of APC in the state, Mr Hakeem Bamgbala described Gbajabiamila as a great party man who had not only made the state proud but also the party.

    Bamgbala represented by the Vice-Chairman, Itire-Ikate Local Council Development Area, Mr Gbenga Oyebode, said Gbajabiamila had demonstrated exemplary leadership.

    Read Also: Lagos Island Rotary to build hospital

    Also, Mr Desmond Elliot; a member of the Lagos State House of Assembly ( LAHA ), said Gbajabiamila had touched the lives of many constituents.

    He said that he had empowered many residents through so many initiatives and represented the area well at the House of Representatives.

    He urged the residents of Surulere to give the House Leader all the support in his bid for another term.

    A resident and chieftain of the APC, Mr Adeseye Amigos, praised Gbajabiamila for his contributions to the development of Surulere.

    He said that the residents were pleased with him and would support his bid for another term.

    The newsmen reports that other constituents took turns to commend Gbajabiamila at the assembly, pledging support for him.

    NAN

  • Reps condemn attack on Senate

    The House of Representatives has called for total overhaul of the National Assembly security system following Wednesday’s attack on the Senate by hoodlums.

    The lawmakers condemned the porosity of the National Assembly complex where adequate security was said to be grossly lacking.

    The call followed the adoption of a motion of urgent national importance by the House Leader, Femi Gbajabiamila, who described the invasion of the Senate by hoodlums as attack on the highest arm of institution.

    He said: “In every democracy, the mace is vital to the parliament. We don’t know the facts yet, though it has started to unraveled.

    “What we do know is that thugs came into the floor of the Senate while members are sitting, picked up the mace and took off with it into a waiting car in front of the White House.

    “How this happened is a cause for concern because it is easier for the camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for anybody to walk into the chamber and pick up the mace.

    “It is sad that on this day we have visiting parliamentarians from the Gambia and we have to apologise to them because they should not leave with a bad taste in their mouth.

    “So, we have to join the Senate in solidarity because as it is now, we are sitting ducks and we will be forever if something is not done on the matter.

    “This moment should be used for what we should have done long ago. This place is porous. Things we should not see are happening everywhere. You see people hawking, some selling clothes and suya. How did they get in?

    “There is a need to discuss how to beef up the security at the National Assembly.

    “This attack is sacrilegious and could have been worse. This is akin to a terrorist attack but we will not be intimidated.

    “This attack is meant to stop us from performing our job but we will sit and do our job.”

     

     

  • Surulere endorses Gbajabiamila for fifth term

    Members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Surulere Federal Constituency 1, Lagos State, have endorsed the House of Representatives Majority Leader, Femi Gbajabiamila, for a fifth term. LEKE SALAUDEEN reports.

    Given the groundswell of opposition against his second term ambition, do you roads; so he makes the money to reach out to the grassroots. But the local councils and the local council development areas are not measuring up to the governor’s pace; they consume the money before it gets to the masses. But they are fighting for autonomy for local governments and I think it is a good thing. It will be very good, if local governments are autonomous, because we are likely to have quality people in politics at that level. This is because when a good person comes out as an independent candidate and wins, he would be a pain in the neck in the legislature. Whatever they want to do, he would voice out. We need some changes; practical changes in our body politic.

    What should governors owing salaries do to make their states more solvent?

    For me, many of the state administrations are unnecessarily unwieldy. They cannot spend the budget of the state solely on paying salaries. So, for me, the next thing is to cut down the excessive expenditure for people to multi-task. They have a lot to take care of: roads, education, health, and so on. You can imagine when they will say recurrent expenditure is higher than capital expenditure. The implication is that chopulating is more important than infrastructure development. These are the kind of nonsense that we see around. It is better that we maintain a narrow tight administration. Let them do infrastructural development, let there be visible development and they will get more tax. When Babatunde Raji Fashola was there, you could see market women going to line up to pay their taxes without being compelled. Down here (Southwest, particularly Lagos), we are very lucky, but up there (North), they depend on the Federal Government.

    How would you assess the opposition?

    There is no opposition. The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has not gotten it right. They have ravaged the opposition and, so, nobody takes them serious anymore. In fact, new political parties will become more relevant than the PDP as we approach the next general elections.

    But, the PDP says it is poised to take over in 2019…

    They know in their heart of hearts that they cannot get it; who are their supporters? Well, maybe those who collect rice and beans from them before elections. These are the people they are banking on. Take Lagos for instance: is it really feasible that Lagosians who are witnessing the way Governor Ambode has been developing the state will vote for a Jimi Agbaje or any other candidate for that matter? No! No! No! The PDP is just making noise.

    Are you planning to contest 2019 election?

    One of my brothers has lost so much money in politics. I feel for him, but I don’t want to be in his shoes. I will rather remain quietly on the sideline and be giving my opinions. As long as I have my Permanent Voter’s Card (PVC), I will be voting. I think that is very important, so that one is not left behind. I will make sure I vote and perform my civic responsibility; that is as far as I want to go.

     

  • Osinbajo warns board members against corruption 

    Vice President Yemi Osinbajo on Tuesday warned new board members against corrupt practices in their assignments.

    He spoke through the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Boss Mustapha, while inaugurating boards of agencies under his office supervision.

    The boards inaugurated on Tuesday included the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS), National Boundary Commission (NBC) and Border Communities Development Agency (BCDA).

    Harping on government’s determination to win the battle against corruption, Osinbajo urged the new chairmen and members to totally eschew corruption.

    He said “Let me at this point reiterate the determination of this administration to succeed in the fight against corruption. In carrying out your responsibility as Board Members, you must therefore eschew corruption totally as Government will not hesitate to sanction all infractions.”

    He also urged the new board members to focus on economic development and revive the country from recession.

    Osinbajo also charged them to key into the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan of the Federal Government.

    He said “Nigeria has over the last 24 to 36 months, passed through a period of economic recession which necessitated the development of a home grown Economic Recovery and Growth Plan.

    “Which you are expected to key into, in view of the importance of your institutions to national economic stability.

    “I therefore expect robust policies initiatives from you as members of the board being inaugurated today,” the Vice President said.

    The management of the various organisations under the boards, he said, should be allowed to perform their duties without any interference from the board.

    The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, who was represented by Femi Gbajabiamila observed that the board was critical to national development.

    “There is a lot of work to be done and I believe you will do a wonderful job.” he said

    The Chairman of NIPSS Board, Ignatius Longjan, who spoke on behalf of the members promised to be diligent in their studies.

    He said “In this national assignment given to yes, we will do it diligently and appropriately, we will not let you down.

    “We will carry out these assignments to the best of our ability, whatever will make Nigeria better, we will do it,” he added

    While Vice President Yemi Osinbajo is the Chairman of National Boundary Commission (NBC) and Border Community Development Agency (BCDA) Boards, Ignatius Longjan is the Chairman for NIPSS.

    Read Also: Osinbajo: Buhari administration is building a bright future for the youths

  • Ajaokuta: Reps ask Buhari to stop concession

    The House of Representatives on Thursday advised President Muhammadu Buhari to stop Mines and Steel Development Minister, Dr Kayode Fayemi, from concession moves of Ajaokuta Steel Company.

    The House said that the stoppage was to give time for conclusion of review of the process ordered by the chamber as part of its drive to get the company back on stream. 

    The resolution followed a motion by Rep. Ahmed Yerima (Zamfara-APC) and 24 other lawmakers.

    The motion is entitled “Urgent Need to Investigate the Circumstances under Which the Federal Ministry of Mines and Steel Engaged the Globally Discredited PricewaterhouseCoopers ( PwC ) to audit Ajaokuta Steel Complex for Purposes of Concession.”

    Moving the motion, Yerima said he was aware that Fayemi recently announced, “and it was widely published’’, that Ajaokuta Steel Company would be given out on concession after an ongoing audit.

    He disclosed that audit of the company was undertaken by PricewaterhouseCoopers, which he alleged, had been discredited, “having been sanctioned in India with a two-year audit ban for infractions of over one billion dollars’’.

    The lawmaker said that the firm was also sanctioned in Brazil for which it paid 50 million dollars as fine, and was fined in the United Kingdom for 5.1 million pounds.

    He also said that the firm paid 225 million dollars and 25 million dollars, respectively, as fines to TYCO shareholders in the U.S and Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishiw for laundering money for Iran, Sudan and Myanmar.

    He added that it was blacklisted for roles in terrorism and human rights abuses, among other infractions and irregularities in its operations, “which has left its reputation in tatters.”

    Yerima expressed concern by the allegation that PricewaterhouseCoopers was informally engaged by Global Steel to assist and advise them on how to recover Ajaokuta Steel Company and National Iron Ore Company ( NIOMCO ), Itakpe, from the Federal Government.

    He said he was worried that the minister engaged a company whose antecedents may suggest that they were engaged to audit and prepare reports which may skew the outcome in a pre-conceived manner.

    According to him, it may have done to favour parties which the minister may have lined up or which may represent the interests of their former clients ( GINL ).

    The legislator wondered why Bureau of Public Enterprises, and Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission ( ICRC ), established by law, was not involved in the audit and concession process.

    He accused Fayemi of deliberate plot to concession Ajaokuta Steel Company to a pre-determined group.

    He decried the minister’s submission that government could no longer spend additional funds on the company “when he is already spending N2 billion for the concession process’’ and where Nigeria spent over 3.5 billion dollars on steel importation.

    Yerima said since NIOMCO was handed again to Global Steel in “so called modified concession for a seven-year period with an option of a further 10 years, the plant which is integrated with Ajaokuta Steel Complex has remained moribund’’.

    According to him, this development is an indication of likely failure of yet another concession.

    Supporting the motion, Rep. Nicholas Ossai (Delta-PDP) said “this is a man that says that Ajaokuta cannot be brought to life but has spent N2 billion on the company 

    “This has to be investigated in line with section 88 of the 1999 Constitution. 

    In his contribution, Rep. Mohammed Abdu (Bauchi-APC) said “we know that the five countries of the world that have become world powers have their roots in steel industry. We cannot play with our common sovereign wealth.”

    Similarly, Rep. Bashir Babale (Kano-APC) reminded members that “this is a government that promised change and to fight corruption.

    “How much are we spending to import steel in this country? I wonder why the minister was in a hurry for this concession.

    “We need to be patriotic enough to make sure that what we do, we do it for Nigerians. I urge my colleagues to support this motion.”

    On his part, House Leader, Mr Femi Gbajabiamila, called for a Bill to stop the concession of Ajaokuta Steel Company or amend existing law to check the process.

    Many lawmakers, including Edward Pwalok (Plateau-APC), Toby Okechukwu (Enugu-PDP), Aminu Shagari (Sokoto-APC) and Emmanuel Orker-Jev (Benue-APC) supported the motion.

    The House agreed that the decision to stop the concession process was in the interest of the nation’s economy and the anti-corruption fight of the Buhari administration.

    In adopting the motion, the lawmakers resolved to expand the mandate of its Ad Hoc Committee on Ajaokuta Steel Complex to include urgent consideration of possibility of a bill for completion of the company and prohibit its concession. 

    It equally mandated the committee to inquire into the rationale of engaging “a globally discredited firm, PricewaterhouseCoopers ( PWC ) to audit the company, without due process.

    The House consequently urged the Senate to concur on the motion and resolved to amend the National Council on Privatisation ( NCP ) Act to delete Ajaokuta Steel Complex from the list of companies for concession.

    NAN