The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Legislators

  • Ugandan legislators throw chairs in fight over presidential age limit

    Ugandan legislators throw chairs in fight over presidential age limit

    Ugandan legislators on Tuesday got into a major scuffle inside parliament, shortly before a controversial motion was introduced that could extend President Yoweri Museveni’s grip on power.

    Broadcaster NTV showed politicians throwing chairs and attacking each other in a fight over a plan to remove the presidential age limit of 75 years.

    Outside the building, police and military were deployed to discourage demonstrations against the planned bill.

    Police in riot gear also surrounded the offices of opposition parties in Kampala.

    Under the current law, a person of over 75 years cannot run for president.

    Museveni, 73, who has been in power since 1986, would not be eligible to compete for the highest office again at the end of his term in 2021, unless the law is changed.

    The bill is expected to pass easily when voted on, as the majority of the nearly 500 member parliaments belong to the ruling party.

    Tuesday’s fight inside parliament comes after almost 50 protesters, mostly students, were arrested in Kampala over the weekend, facing charges of inciting violence, assault and unlawful assembly.

    Six parliamentarians, Kampala Mayor, Erias Lukwago and opposition leader, Kizza Besigye, were also arrested and released on bond. (dpa/NAN)

  • Six Kogi PDP legislators defect to APC

    Six Kogi PDP legislators defect to APC

    Six members of the Kogi House of Assembly, elected on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), have defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC).

    The members, in a joint notification letter to the Speaker, Alhaji Umar Imam, cited “factional squabbles” in the PDP, as responsible for their action.

    Imam, while reading the letter on the floor of the House on Thursday, named the defectors as John Abah (Ibaji), Adoke Bello (Adavi), Kolawole Atthew (Kabba-Bunu), Ahmed Mohammed (Ankpa 1), Victor Omofaiye (Ijumu) and Kekere Sani-Abdulkareem (Okehi).

    The legislators said that they were forced to move to a more stable political group because the factional squabbles, both at the national and state levels, had torn the PDP into shreds.

    “The PDP has two National Chairmen – Sen. Ali Modu-Sheriff and Sen. Ahmed Makarfi- whose existence for over 10 months has left us uncomfortable, politically.

    “In view of the unfortunate division and its negative implications, we have no option than to defect to the APC to be able to accomplish our missions of bringing government closer to our people,’’ the letter further stated.

    Reacting, Godwin Osiyi (PDP, Ogori-Magongo), warned the defectors against moving away from their new political abode anytime it was faced with similar disagreements.

    Osiyi advised that the defection should not be allowed to affect the peace and unity among members.

    The Speaker, while congratulating the defectors for their decision, assured his colleagues that their action would  not affect the unity in the House.

    “What is important is the peace and unity that we enjoy. The House remains one. We are all gentlemen and have to be focused toward what we can do in the remaining period,’’ Imam said.

    Speaking with newsmen shortly after the session, Mr Friday Sani (PDP-Igalamela-Odolu), described the defection as a `child’s play’, and claimed that the members did not follow due process as enshrined in section 109 of the constitution.

    “Votes belong to the party and not individual candidates; the defectors will lose their seats because we shall challenge their action in court,” he said.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that with the defection of the six members, the PDP, formerly the majority party in the House, has become the minority with nine members to APC’s 16 in the 25-member Assembly. (NAN)

  • Kebbi commissioners, legislators get N7m tokunbo car each

    Kebbi commissioners, legislators get N7m tokunbo car each

    Commissioners and assemblymen in Kebbi State have been given a fairly used car each by the state government in what the Secretary to the State Government, Alhaji Babale Umar Yauri, described as part of the effort to save cost.
    Each of the vehicles, otherwise called tokunbo, cost N7m, the SSG told reporters in Birnin Kebbi.
    Yauri said the Atiku Bagudu administration was determined to avoid excessive spending, hence the decision to go for second hand cars.
    The SSG has also said that over N500 million had been spent on curtailing cattle rustling in the state.
    The stop cattle rustling campaign, according to him, the government involved a joint security operation with Sokoto, Zamfara, Kaduna, and Niger states in the Kamuku-Kuyanbana forest.
    The police, Army, Air Force and Customs took part in the operation, code named Operation Sharan Daji aimed at ridding the area of cattle rustlers and other criminals.

  • Why constitution should be amended, by legislators

    Why constitution should be amended, by legislators

    The House of Representatives Ad-hoc Committee on Constitution Review has held a three-day retreat in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital. The theme was the ‘Imperatives of Constitution Review/Amendment in Nation Building’. At the end of the retreat, members of the committee said they would avoid the pitfalls that bedevilled the attempt by the Seventh Legislative Assembly to review the 1999 Constitution. Correspondent ERNEST NWOKOLO was there.

    The National Assembly has embarked on another process of reviewing the 1999 Constitution. The move is ostensibly to make it promote and protect democracy as well as meet the aspirations of Nigerians. The House of Representatives Ad-hoc Committee on Constitution Review was in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital, recently for a three-day retreat. The event, which took place under the theme, “The Imperatives of Constitution Review/Amendment in Nation Building,” was chaired by the Deputy Speaker, Hon. Lasun Yussuff, who also doubled as the Ad-hoc Committee Chairman on Constitution Review.

    The bid to review the constitution became necessary because of the failure of the previous attempt by the 7th Legislative Assembly and the increasing challenges facing the country in the areas of security, economy, resource control agitation among others. The committee was inaugurated on January 21 by the Speaker, Yakubu Dogara, with a mandate to deliver within the “shortest possible time,” amendments to the 1999 Constitution that would “stand the test of time” and continue the work of the 7th Assembly particularly in areas where consensus had been reached.

    Earlier in June, the Senate Ad-hoc Committee on Constitution Review held a similar retreat in Lagos where politicians and other stakeholders deliberated on the need to fashion a better Nigerian constitution.

    The former judge of the International Court at Hague, Prince Bola Ajibola, described the latest review as another crucial time for “tongue work” on the constitution. Ajibola, a one-time Attorney General and Minister of Justice, who was the guest speaker at the House Committee retreat, said the task before the legislators was quite important, because it was far better for Nigerians to “jaw-jaw than to war-war” on issues that affect the country.

    The septuagenarian charged the committee to undertake a drastic and urgent review of the constitution to take care of the nation’s precarious economic situation. According to him, urgent steps were needed to return the economy to the path of prosperity, as Nigerians have never had it so bad.

    He said: “The Nigerian Constitution needs to be amended, particularly the economic aspect, because we have never had it so bad. In our time, there was nothing like recession, oppression or depression. There is need to reconstruct the constitution, given the current realities. The culture of stealing and corruption must find their way out, so as to keep our country in the position that it should be.”

    The Olu of Ilaro and Paramount Ruler of Yewaland, Oba Kehinde Olugbenle, also made a case for roles to the apportioned to traditional rulers in the constitution, since they are an integral part of governance, particularly at the grassroots level.

    He said the process of constitution amendment in Nigeria is not only tortuous, but also cumbersome and urged the legislators to overhaul it for the benefit of Nigerians. He added: “It is not good to have a law that cannot be changed or fine tuned.”

    In declaring the retreat open, Dogara admonished the committee members to re-examine all issues, including those where consensus had been reached during the botched review by the 7th Legislative Assembly and the contentious ones and proceed in the best way possible to meet the yearnings of Nigerians.

    Dogara said since one parliament does not bind the hands of another that it is necessary to re-examine all the issues, agreeable and contentious ones. He urged the committee not to give up on the stalled proposal seeking financial and structural autonomy for local governments, but to revisit the matter again.

    According to him, the Financial and Structural Autonomy Bill for Local Governments did not sail through because only 20 out of the 36 states of the federation supported the proposal.

    Dogara, who was represented by the House Majority leader, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila, noted that if the National Assembly had gotten four more states to support the bill at the time, they would have achieved the financial and structural autonomy for the nation’s local governments.

    He also made a case for a decentralised police system to be included in the constitution, to enhance efficiency and effectiveness in combating security challenges across the country.

    Dogara said the nation’s experience with Boko Haram insurgents in parts of the Northeast had justified the need for such a decentralised police force, saying it is something Nigerians should “ponder and debate” now. He added: “The Boko Haram experience has exposed the need for some for decentralised policing in Nigeria.

    “I believe that this may be achieved by allowing a decentralised police force within one national police organisation or by the existence of localised police structure. This is a matter for Nigerians to ponder and debate.”

    The Speaker, however, said the success of the fifth amendment of the constitution would depend to a great extent on the support of Nigerians, the state Houses of Assembly and the media.

    For Yussuff, he identified legalising same-sex marriage, resource control, creation of more local government and the appointment of judges as some of the contemporary issues requiring constitutional review.

    Others, he added, include the constitutional implications of the executive team ticket, in the light of the conflict in Kogi State following the death of Prince Abubakar Audu and need for a credible electoral process.

    In his recap of what was achieved during the retreat, Lasun listed 14 resolutions which formed basis for the amendment of the constitution, including areas already reviewed by the 7th Assembly. The resolutions included, amendment of the bill of the separation of the  Office of the Attorney-General and that of the Minister of Justice, financial and administrative autonomy for local government councils, the creation of the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation, the authorisation of expenditure, devolution of power/legislative lists, electoral matters, creation of new states and boundary adjustment.

    The Deputy Speaker disclosed that the novel thing about the on-going amendments which he referred to as “the fifth alteration,” is that it would not be presented to the President Mohammad Buhari as a single bill for his accent, as was the case with the fourth amendment by the 7th legislative Assembly, where both the bad and the good aspects of the amendments were rejected by the then President Goodluck Jonathan, because all came in one single package.

    Lasun explained that the amendments would be presented as separate single bills and that the innovation would save time, remove all forms of technicalities and help the President in circumstances where he wants to give assent in some areas and reject others, instead of the previous pattern of throwing away the baby and the bath water.

    The lawmaker from Osun State said they have “successfully navigated the bend” that stalled the previous exercise. He expressed the confidence that the on-going bills, when perfected, would be ready for the President’s assent before the end of his second year in office.

    However, Lasun warned Nigerians not to expect the removal of the “immunity clause” for sitting governors, adding that the clause would stay, as provided for them in the constitution. He declared that “it is a no go area” in the current review exercise.

    In his view, there is nothing wrong in the immunity clause as contained in the constitution, because it does not give the governors immunity against prosecution for criminal infractions, but only protect them from likely distractions of civil litigations.

    He said altering or removing the clause, as is being clamoured for by Nigerians, would distract the governors from administering their states properly.

    The committee, he hinted, had also looked into the report of the 2014 National Conference and picked the areas that were relevant to the current amendment efforts. He added that something must be done to ensure that local governments enjoy financial and structural autonomy.

    He said: “There is nothing wrong in the immunity that is already in the constitution, because it doesn’t say that the person cannot be prosecuted after he has left the office.

    “Nobody is immune when it comes to prosecution that borders on criminal charges. But, if you have to go to take a sitting governor to court on civil matters when the governor on whose hands lie the lives of the people, then that will bring distraction to governance.

    “The immunity as it is today we are not going to touch it; I’m not going to deceive you and I’m not going to tell lies. The maximum years a governor stays in office eight years and whatever offence that he might have committed while in office is still as fresh as if it has just been committed yesterday.

    “What people must do is to bring out such offences when the governor has left office. So, it is about institutions and individuals being lazy, nothing is shielding anybody away from being prosecuted after leaving the office.”

    Nevertheless, Lasun lamented that governors had rendered local government administrations in the country redundant by starving them of funds meant for their development.

    He said: “It is no longer news that local governments all over the country today are almost getting to non-existence and so we think that development is rural-based and local government has the central role in developing our environments. So, part of the alteration on the constitution is going to dwell on financial and administrative autonomy for local governments.

    “All over the world, the centre of development has been found to be at the grassroots because we are talking about people who form small components of the society, from the family to the compound, to the villages down to the towns.

    “We have discovered that over time local governments are no longer existing; it is not even a question of whether elections are conducted or not, but we are considering barring states from assessing local government money, if there are no elected officials at the councils.

    “That is part of the alteration that we are going to do. If you don’t have any elected local government official, we will make sure that you don’t get the money of such local government.

    “The stakeholders were met in the past during the 7th Assembly on these specific issues; we collated their opinions and so we are not bringing confusion into the procedure of amendment. We are currently working on those issues that were successfully collated Nigerian opinions on these 14 areas.”

    The host, Governor Ibikunle Amosun described the task before the committee as “very important” and “onerous,” praying that the country should get it right this time. Amosun argued the proposed review would provide a golden opportunity to resolve contentious issues hurting the nation, but warned that nobody toys with the unity and indivisibility of Nigeria.

    Amosun identified those contentious areas as: “Derivation formula, revenue allocation, fiscal federation, state creation, resource control, local government creation by states, state police, as well as the perceived marginalisation of ethnic minorities and some regions.

    “The proposed constitution review will present our countrymen and women a rare opportunity of making inputs into the constitution, to truly capture the terms of co-existence by the different nationalities that make up the country.

  • Why constitution should be amended, by legislators

    Why constitution should be amended, by legislators

    The House of Representatives Ad-hoc Committee on Constitution Review has held a three-day retreat in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital. The theme was the ‘Imperatives of Constitution Review/Amendment in Nation Building’. At the end of the retreat, members of the committee said they would avoid the pitfalls that bedevilled the attempt by the Seventh Legislative Assembly to review the 1999 Constitution. Correspondent ERNEST NWOKOLO was there.

    THE National Assembly has embarked on another process of reviewing the 1999 Constitution. The move is ostensibly to make it promote and protect democracy as well as meet the aspirations of Nigerians. The House of Representatives Ad-hoc Committee on Constitution Review was in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital, recently for a three-day retreat. The event, which took place under the theme, “The Imperatives of Constitution Review/Amendment in Nation Building,” was chaired by the Deputy Speaker, Hon. Lasun Yussuff, who also doubled as the Ad-hoc Committee Chairman on Constitution Review.
    The bid to review the constitution became necessary because of the failure of the previous attempt by the 7th Legislative Assembly and the increasing challenges facing the country in the areas of security, economy, resource control agitation among others. The committee was inaugurated on January 21 by the Speaker, Yakubu Dogara, with a mandate to deliver within the “shortest possible time,” amendments to the 1999 Constitution that would “stand the test of time” and continue the work of the 7th Assembly particularly in areas where consensus had been reached.
    Earlier in June, the Senate Ad-hoc Committee on Constitution Review held a similar retreat in Lagos where politicians and other stakeholders deliberated on the need to fashion a better Nigerian constitution.
    The former judge of the International Court at Hague, Prince Bola Ajibola, described the latest review as another crucial time for “tongue work” on the constitution. Ajibola, a one-time Attorney General and Minister of Justice, who was the guest speaker at the House Committee retreat, said the task before the legislators was quite important, because it was far better for Nigerians to “jaw-jaw than to war-war” on issues that affect the country.
    The septuagenarian charged the committee to undertake a drastic and urgent review of the constitution to take care of the nation’s precarious economic situation. According to him, urgent steps were needed to return the economy to the path of prosperity, as Nigerians have never had it so bad.
    He said: “The Nigerian Constitution needs to be amended, particularly the economic aspect, because we have never had it so bad. In our time, there was nothing like recession, oppression or depression. There is need to reconstruct the constitution, given the current realities. The culture of stealing and corruption must find their way out, so as to keep our country in the position that it should be.”
    The Olu of Ilaro and Paramount Ruler of Yewaland, Oba Kehinde Olugbenle, also made a case for roles to the apportioned to traditional rulers in the constitution, since they are an integral part of governance, particularly at the grassroots level.
    He said the process of constitution amendment in Nigeria is not only tortuous, but also cumbersome and urged the legislators to overhaul it for the benefit of Nigerians. He added: “It is not good to have a law that cannot be changed or fine tuned.”
    In declaring the retreat open, Dogara admonished the committee members to re-examine all issues, including those where consensus had been reached during the botched review by the 7th Legislative Assembly and the contentious ones and proceed in the best way possible to meet the yearnings of Nigerians.
    Dogara said since one parliament does not bind the hands of another that it is necessary to re-examine all the issues, agreeable and contentious ones. He urged the committee not to give up on the stalled proposal seeking financial and structural autonomy for local governments, but to revisit the matter again.
    According to him, the Financial and Structural Autonomy Bill for Local Governments did not sail through because only 20 out of the 36 states of the federation supported the proposal.
    Dogara, who was represented by the House Majority leader, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila, noted that if the National Assembly had gotten four more states to support the bill at the time, they would have achieved the financial and structural autonomy for the nation’s local governments.
    He also made a case for a decentralised police system to be included in the constitution, to enhance efficiency and effectiveness in combating security challenges across the country.
    Dogara said the nation’s experience with Boko Haram insurgents in parts of the Northeast had justified the need for such a decentralised police force, saying it is something Nigerians should “ponder and debate” now. He added: “The Boko Haram experience has exposed the need for some for decentralised policing in Nigeria.
    “I believe that this may be achieved by allowing a decentralised police force within one national police organisation or by the existence of localised police structure. This is a matter for Nigerians to ponder and debate.”
    The Speaker, however, said the success of the fifth amendment of the constitution would depend to a great extent on the support of Nigerians, the state Houses of Assembly and the media.
    For Yussuff, he identified legalising same-sex marriage, resource control, creation of more local government and the appointment of judges as some of the contemporary issues requiring constitutional review.
    Others, he added, include the constitutional implications of the executive team ticket, in the light of the conflict in Kogi State following the death of Prince Abubakar Audu and need for a credible electoral process.
    In his recap of what was achieved during the retreat, Lasun listed 14 resolutions which formed basis for the amendment of the constitution, including areas already reviewed by the 7th Assembly. The resolutions included, amendment of the bill of the separation of the Office of the Attorney-General and that of the Minister of Justice, financial and administrative autonomy for local government councils, the creation of the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation, the authorisation of expenditure, devolution of power/legislative lists, electoral matters, creation of new states and boundary adjustment.
    The Deputy Speaker disclosed that the novel thing about the on-going amendments which he referred to as “the fifth alteration,” is that it would not be presented to the President Mohammad Buhari as a single bill for his accent, as was the case with the fourth amendment by the 7th legislative Assembly, where both the bad and the good aspects of the amendments were rejected by the then President Goodluck Jonathan, because all came in one single package.
    Lasun explained that the amendments would be presented as separate single bills and that the innovation would save time, remove all forms of technicalities and help the President in circumstances where he wants to give assent in some areas and reject others, instead of the previous pattern of throwing away the baby and the bath water.
    The lawmaker from Osun State said they have “successfully navigated the bend” that stalled the previous exercise. He expressed the confidence that the on-going bills, when perfected, would be ready for the President’s assent before the end of his second year in office.
    However, Lasun warned Nigerians not to expect the removal of the “immunity clause” for sitting governors, adding that the clause would stay, as provided for them in the constitution. He declared that “it is a no go area” in the current review exercise.
    In his view, there is nothing wrong in the immunity clause as contained in the constitution, because it does not give the governors immunity against prosecution for criminal infractions, but only protect them from likely distractions of civil litigations.
    He said altering or removing the clause, as is being clamoured for by Nigerians, would distract the governors from administering their states properly.
    The committee, he hinted, had also looked into the report of the 2014 National Conference and picked the areas that were relevant to the current amendment efforts. He added that something must be done to ensure that local governments enjoy financial and structural autonomy.
    He said: “There is nothing wrong in the immunity that is already in the constitution, because it doesn’t say that the person cannot be prosecuted after he has left the office.
    “Nobody is immune when it comes to prosecution that borders on criminal charges. But, if you have to go to take a sitting governor to court on civil matters when the governor on whose hands lie the lives of the people, then that will bring distraction to governance.
    “The immunity as it is today we are not going to touch it; I’m not going to deceive you and I’m not going to tell lies. The maximum years a governor stays in office eight years and whatever offence that he might have committed while in office is still as fresh as if it has just been committed yesterday.
    “What people must do is to bring out such offences when the governor has left office. So, it is about institutions and individuals being lazy, nothing is shielding anybody away from being prosecuted after leaving the office.”
    Nevertheless, Lasun lamented that governors had rendered local government administrations in the country redundant by starving them of funds meant for their development.
    He said: “It is no longer news that local governments all over the country today are almost getting to non-existence and so we think that development is rural-based and local government has the central role in developing our environments. So, part of the alteration on the constitution is going to dwell on financial and administrative autonomy for local governments.
    “All over the world, the centre of development has been found to be at the grassroots because we are talking about people who form small components of the society, from the family to the compound, to the villages down to the towns.
    “We have discovered that over time local governments are no longer existing; it is not even a question of whether elections are conducted or not, but we are considering barring states from assessing local government money, if there are no elected officials at the councils.
    “That is part of the alteration that we are going to do. If you don’t have any elected local government official, we will make sure that you don’t get the money of such local government.
    “The stakeholders were met in the past during the 7th Assembly on these specific issues; we collated their opinions and so we are not bringing confusion into the procedure of amendment. We are currently working on those issues that were successfully collated Nigerian opinions on these 14 areas.”
    The host, Governor Ibikunle Amosun described the task before the committee as “very important” and “onerous,” praying that the country should get it right this time. Amosun argued the proposed review would provide a golden opportunity to resolve contentious issues hurting the nation, but warned that nobody toys with the unity and indivisibility of Nigeria.
    Amosun identified those contentious areas as: “Derivation formula, revenue allocation, fiscal federation, state creation, resource control, local government creation by states, state police, as well as the perceived marginalisation of ethnic minorities and some regions.
    “The proposed constitution review will present our countrymen and women a rare opportunity of making inputs into the constitution, to truly capture the terms of co-existence by the different nationalities that make up the country.

    “Let me, however, sound a note of warning that whatever amendments we seek to do, it should be such that we ensure the indivisibility of the Nigerian nation.
    “One irrefutable fact is that a lot of the challenges in the polity are readily blamed on the inadequacy of the 1999 Constitution.
    “Perhaps, the major task before this committee is the entrenchment of the tenets of true federalism. It is anticipated that at the end of the review exercise, we shall come up with an acceptable document that will not only bind us together as one indivisible entity, but will also serve as a blueprint for further socio-economic and political development of Nigeria.”
    Amosun added: “I hope we will get it right this time, the political will is there in Ogun to support things that bind us together.
    We believe in indivisibiity of the nation, you should fine-tune all the grey areas.”Despite the fact that 27 of the 36 states are unable to pay workers’ salary promptly and regularly, the clamour for more new states has not whittled down. Gbajabiamila hinted during dinner with the host governor that there was a proposal before the House which sought to carve three states out of the present Ogun State.
    The lawmaker from Lagos State did not elaborate on the proposal, but said the committee would expect to see the position of the state government regarding it.
    Gbajabiamila said the committee was in Ogun State to perfect some aspects of the document. He said: “We here to make perfect the living documents that will guide us; the constitution. There is a proposal to carve Ogun into three states; we know you will make a representation at the appropriate time.”
    Yusuf added that he and his colleagues were in the Gateway State for the purpose of constitution review and that there was a lot of work to do about it.

  • ‘Legislators lack powers to summon judges’

    A rights’ group, Legal Defence and Assistance Project (LEDAP), has faulted plans by the Senate Committee on Judiciary to summon judges arrested by the Department of State Services (DSS).

    It said the legislature had no oversight powers over judicial officers in line with the principle of separation of powers.

    In a statement by its National Coordinator Mr. Chinos Obiagwu, LEDAP said only the National Judicial Council (NJC) was empowered by the Constitution to discipline judges and justices of superior courts.

    The group said any interference by the legislature or the executive in the affairs of the judiciary would be unlawful.

    LEDAP said: “The 1999 Constitution, unlike the legal framework of past military regimes, has consolidated the independence of the judiciary and established the NJC as the only body responsible for management of the judiciary.

    “There are a lot of corruption issues and corrupt politicians in the legislature and executive, which should preoccupy the senators. The scandal arising from the padding of the budget, which has been going on for many years in the legislature with connivance of the executive, as well as bogus and secretive huge allowances and emoluments claimed by legislators are more damaging economic crimes against the people that the Senate should address rather than intimidating a few judges alleged to be corrupt.

    “There are several court orders directing the National Assembly to disclose salaries and emoluments of its members, and details of constituency allowances claimed yearly by legislators. It has refused to obey these judgments of the courts.

    “The legislators appropriate nearly a quarter of the national wealth to themselves and account to no one. Nigerian legislators, adjudged as the most corrupt and most expensive in the world, has no legal or moral right to superintend over alleged corruption in the judiciary.”

  • Jumbo salaries of legislators

    Jumbo salaries of legislators

    Apart from the issue of oil subsidy, no other subject has enraged and infuriated Nigerians more than the issue of the jumbo salaries and allowances of the members of the National Assembly.

    Yet in spite of the anger, the salaries and allowances are licit under the monetization policy of the government which was implemented in 2003.

    It is the monetisation policy that enabled the former Senate President David Mark to buy so cheaply the official residence of the Senate President at Apo in Abuja- a house that should be a National heritage- and get away with it.

    Ditto to the former speaker of the House of Representatives, Dimeji Bankole who bought the official residence of the speaker of the House of Representatives also at Apo at giveaway price and got away with it.

    If we talk about the jumbo salaries and allowances for the legislators what about top civil servants who earn their jumbo salaries for life and the governors and former governors who also earn their jumbo salaries and entitlements for life?

    Once we adopt the Presidential system of government we cannot run away from its excesses. And also its shortcomings. The jumbo salaries and allowances of the members of the National Assembly and the security votes of the governors is also part of the excesses. They must be curbed in the light of the dwindling fortunes of the Nigeria economy. We cannot afford it.

    What is monetisation? Monetisation is the quantification in money terms of those fringe benefits which government used to provide for its workers as part of their conditions of service. Such benefits include residential accommodation, chauffeur-driven cars, residential furniture, utility services, etc.

    This policy is only practiced in Ghana, Cameroun and other African countries. I understand that Ghana had stopped the policy in the last two months.

    The proposal came from the Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission. It was debated in the National Assembly and passed into law as ‘Certain Political, Public and Judicial office Holders (Salaries and Allowances etc) Act 2002. Monetisation was clamoured for by Civil Servants, as conveyed in the Communiqué of the Re-orientation Workshop for Directorate Level Officers in the Federal Civil Service read to the President, Olusegun Obasanjo on  January 14, 2002. The Organised Private Sector and a number of Government Agencies and Parastatals have adopted Monetisation of benefits for quite some time now, e.g. CBN, NNPC, etc.  I note also that the university system has monetised fringe benefits and allowances.

    In other to ensure effective implementation of the policy, the presidential committee on the monetization of fringe benefits in the public service of the federation was set up by President Obasanjo on November 11, 2002 under the chairmanship of the then Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Chief Ufott Ekaette (CFR). Following the submission of the committee’s interim report to President Obasanjo and its subsequent adoption by government, a circular detailing the newly monetised fringe benefits and the modalities for their implementation was issued on  June 27, 2003, with July 1, 2003 as the commencement date of the programme. To sensitise the states on the implementation of the programme, an interactive session was earlier organized on Tuesday June 17, 2003 to enable both the Head of Civil Service of the Federation to intimate Secretaries to State Governments (SSGs) and Head of Civil Service of the States(HCSS) in the 36 states of the federation on the modalities for the implementation of the policy. Suffice it to say the states objected to the implementation insisting that they could not afford it.

    On November 27, 2003, Chief Ekaette told members of the Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Lagos under the headship of Professor Lai Olurode that “ Monetisation as a public policy reform must be appreciated in the context of other reforms each of which plays complementary roles with the new overarching economic development strategy of the Obasanjo administration called NEEDS(National Economic Empowerment Development Strategy).”

    The following was approved for members of the National Assembly as part of the monetisation policy: (a) Housing Allowance-100% of Annual Basic Salary (b) Transport Allowance-350% of Annual Basic Salary (c) Utility Allowance-20% of Annual Basic Salary (d) Domestic Staff Allowance-75% of Annual Basic Salary (e) Entertainment Allowance- 10% of Annual Basic Salary (f) Constituency Allowance- 150% of Annual Basic Salary (g) Furniture Allowance- 300% of Annual Basic Salary (h) Allowance for Employment of Special Assistant- Equivalent of 25% of Annual Basic Salary to be paid (i) Vehicle Maintenance and Fuelling- 30% of Annual Basic Salary (j) Recess Allowance- 10% of Annual Basic Salary (k) Severance Gratuity- 300% of Annual Basic Salary(to be paid once in a life time) after successful completion of tenure.

    The following was approved under the monetization policy for federal civil servants (1) Accommodation: Grade level—01-06 (50% of Annual Basic Salary), Grade level – 07-17 (60% of Annual Basic Salary and Grade level – 15 & above (75% of Annual Basic Salary. Transportation – Grade level 01-17 (25% of Annual Basic Salary. Meal Subsidy: Grade level-01-06 (N6,000.00), 07-10(N 8,4000.00), 12-14 (N9,600.00), 15-17 (N 10,800.00), Permanent Secretary (PS) (N 16,200.00). Utility: Grade level – 01-16 (15% of Annual Basic Salary), 17 &above (20% of Annual Basic Salary). Domestic Servant: Grade level 15 (1GL. 3 Step 8), 16-17 (2 GL 3 step 8), PS & above (3 GL 3 step 8). Leave Grant: 01 & above (10% of Annual Basic Salary. Medical: 01 & above (10% of Annual Basic Salary to be paid to NHIS). Furniture Allowance: Grade level—01-06(NIL), 17 & above (200% of Annual Basic Salary in five years, i.e. 40% of per annum). Vehicle loan: Grade level, 01-05 (100% of Annual Basic Salary), 06-07 (150% of Annual Basic Salary, 08& above (200% of Annual Basic Salary. Driver: Grade level 17 & above (1GL.3 step 8.

    The following was approved for the Chief Justice of Nigeria and Judges of the Supreme Court under the monetization policy: (a) Accommodation- to be provided by the government (with an option to be paid 100% of Annual Basic Salary if opted to stay in personal house); (b) Furniture to be provided by government (c) Medical Care to be provided by government, including members of immediate family (d) Robe- to be provided by government (e) Transport: official cars to be assigned and maintained by government; (f) Security to be provided; (g) Utility bills to be settled by government; (h) Domestic Staff to be provided (i) Entertainment to be catered for by government; (j) Special Assistants to be provided from within the Civil Service; (k) Leave Allowance: 10% of Annual Basic Salary to be paid once in each calendar year (l) Hardship Allowance: 50% of Annual Basic Salary; (m) Severance Gratuity: 300% of Annual Basic Salary (to be paid once in a life time) after successful completion of tenure, and, (n) Retirement Benefits- Payable on the basis of Approved Scheme of Service

    In spite of the objection by the states, the Federal Government went ahead and implemented this policy on October 1, 2003 and that policy is still on till today.

    The monetization policy was given legal teeth with passage and coming into the effect of the Certain Political, Public and Judicial Office Holders (Salaries and Allowances etc) Act, 2002 which was extended by circular to cover all federal civil servants. The law took effect from July 1, 2003 for the designated Political, Public and Judicial Office Holders, while it was extended, with somewhat modified rates of benefits, to Federal Civil Servants with effect from 1st October, 2003.

    At the time of his departure from office in 2007, President Obasanjo was shocked to find out the magnitude of the monetisation of the legislators and the jumbo salaries they were to earn. He refused to sign the bill, leaving for President Umaru Yar’Adua who signed it eventually in order to please the legislators. That’s where we are now. This issue cut across party lines in the National Assembly for they are all united for it.

    The monetisation policy, a policy that was meant to solve problems, has now created more problems. It is like a monster now. The question now is, can we afford the monetization policy? The answer is no. It will be unfair to talk about the jumbo salaries and allowances of legislators as a result of monetization policy in isolation without talking about other public officers benefiting from this policy. Cutting salaries by half as announced by President Muhammadu Buhari and his vice, Yemi Osinbajo is a good step. I doubt whether members of the National Assembly will follow the President’s example no matter the pressure. In fact they will tell the President that they have not come to Abuja merely to pass bills or endorse unworkable resolutions only.

    As for these members of the National Assembly and other public officers benefiting from the monetization policy, national sacrifice has to wait.

    All that the President should do is to call a meeting of the stakeholders including governors, legislators, Nigerian Labour Congress, public discussants, religious leaders, market women and other bodies and insist that the government cannot sustain any longer the monetization policy of 2003.

    In the interim he should withdraw the circular on monetisation.

    If possible, he should ignite a national debate on the issue, after all he is our moral guide.

    Teniola, a former director at the presidency, stays in Lagos.

     

  • Dawaki: Legislators rejecting committee membership are after money

    Dawaki: Legislators rejecting committee membership are after money

    House of Representatives member from Kano State Hon. Mustapha Dawaki, in this interview with VICTOR OLUWASEGUN and dele ANOFI, says that legislators rejecting committee appointments are unpatriotic.

    Four party members are rejecting their appoitments as Chairmen and Deputies Chairman of committees. How do you feel about the development?

    Any member of the House of Representatives, who rejects his appointment to chair any committee, is after money and not service because the primary motive of members should be service to the nation, not their personal interest. No committee is useless and it is not the right of any member to chair specific committees. The leadership reserves the right to place members of parliament into committees. So, if their primary motion is service, they have no reason to reject such appointment. If any member who thinks he or she is in the House to make money will be in for a shocker as the Speaker will not tolerate such behaviours and will wash its hands off anyone found wanting.

    The complaint was that the distribution was not fair to the majority party that has the responsibility to assist the government in power.

    Mr. Speaker wants this Assembly to work and pass a record number of bills. Members must sit up and do the right thing. It will no longer be business as usual. That said, we only need to look at the breakdown to see whether the Speaker was fair or not. Ninety six committee Chairmen and their Deputies were appointed. APC got 48 while PDP 45. APC got 55 Deputy Chairmen while it wws 38 for PDP. Of the 48 APC Chairmen, 26 are Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila’s supporters. Of the 54 Deputy Chairmen, 29 are Femi Gbajabiamila’s supporters

    Furthermore, some of the grade A committees allocated to Hon. Femi’s supporters include Customs and Excise with both Chairman and Deputy coming from Femi’s group. They are Faleke and Hon. Chanchangi. Agriculture and many others are also Grade A committees that went to Gbajabiamila’s group.

    There are some committees that naturally belong to some zones as obtained in previous Assemblies, which include Petroluem Resouces and Gas, those committees were retained in those zones. Again, the APC got Grade A committees such as Agriculture, Appropriation, Finance, Police Affairs, Navy, Defence, Interior, FCT, Basic Education, Tertiary Education, Customs, Judiciary, Electoral Matters, Emergency and Disaster Management, Housing, Land Transport, Marine,  Pensions,  Public Safety and Intelligence,  Rules and Business, House Services, Telecommunications, Water Resources and Solid Minerals.

    The grouse was that, if so much was given to the opposition, won’t your governemnt have problems later from these Chairmen?

    I don’t think so. Unlike in the previous Assemblies, this time around, the ruling party, the APC, does not have two-third majority in the House. The PDP  has the numerical strenght to block or frustrate any bill or motion, which requires two-third majority vote. The implication is that they must be carried along in the scheme of things as we cannot afford to run an all exclusive government. And that is why they too must be given committees to chair. As i said earlier, if the motivation of these lawmakers is service, why are they insisting on chairing certain committees? Why are they rejecting some committees? It means that their primary motivation is not service but personal interest. It should be noted that there 360 members in the House,10 are principal officers, while 192 are either chairmen or deputies leaving out 158 others who do not have any position to hold. It is, therefore, a great favour and privilege for any member to be appointed into position of Chairman or Deputy as 158 of his/her colleagues wont have any responsibility. Are they saying that they are better than those ones? Hon. Gideon Gwani is a third termer and is nether a Chairman nor Deputy and he remained loyal and supportive of the leadership and did not raise any issue. Are they better than him? To tell you that the Speaker is not a selfish person, his region or zone of the North East has the least number of committees just about eight. Kano State, my state, has six Chairmen and eight Deputies. These Chairmen include Appropriations, House Services, SDGs, Housing, Poverty Alleviation, Tertiary Education. No Speaker has ever given Kano this much in the past.

  • Ex-legislator attacked, three injured

    A former lawmaker representing Irele/Okitipupa Constituency at the National Assembly, Mr Akintoye Albert narrowly escaped death at the weekend when officers of the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) allegedly shot his convoy.

    Three persons were also said to have sustained injuries in the incident while two of the former legislator’s vehicles were allegedly riddled with bullets.

    Speaking to reporters in Akure ,the former legislator said he was returning home after a political meeting at Ode-irele in Ondo State when men of the NSCDC numbering 12 suddenly accosted his convoy along Irele/Ore road and ordered him and members of his entourage to lie on the floor.

    He said his move to know the mission of the officers resulted in sporadic shooting by the officers following which three members of his entourage were badly injured.

    Akintoye said the officers who came with two Toyota Hilux vehicles belonging to the state command,allegedly beat them and damaged their vehicles.

    Those who sustained injuries according to him were still receiving treatment at a private hospital in Ore.

    Akintoye said the officers apologized to him when they discovered that they had mistaken his convoy for that of oil bunkerers.

    Akintoye believed that the attack was politically motivated, alleging that the officer who led the team is a younger brother of a top politician from the area who had engaged him in a contest in recent time.

    The incident brought to three the number of such attacks meted on innocent citizens of the state by NSCDC officials in the past.

    Akintoye said“The officer claimed that they were chasing some oil bunkerers who normally ply the route, but I want to believe that the attack was politically motivated.

    “I was returning fro ma political meeting at Irele on that fateful day when the incident happened. It was God that saved me. By now I would have been a dead man. The officers later apologized and claimed that they mistook my convoy for that of oil bunkerers”.

    The NSCDC spokesman , Kayode Balogun did not confirm or deny the incident

    Balogun said the officers only reported about the items confiscated from some oil bunkerers in the area to the command

  • ‘How to be good legislators’

    ‘How to be good legislators’

    Members of the Ekiti State House of Assembly recently attended a three-day retreat at the Ikogosi Warm Spring Resort, Ikogosi-Ekiti, where they were enjoined to be good legislators by experts. ODUAYO OGUNMOLA reports.

    The job of a legislator is to make laws. Legislators are also expected to perform oversight functions. According to experts, they need to hone their legislative skills to perform these functions. That was why members of the Ekiti State House of Assembly converge on the Ikogosi Warm Spring Resort, Ikogosi-Ekiti recently for a three day retreat. The theme was: “The Place of Legislature in Democracy.” It was organised by the House of Assembly Commission, in conjunction with FEMOT Associates. It was witnessed by the Clerk, Mr. Tola Esanu, and other resource persons.

    The House of Assembly has 26 members. Only one of them has previous legislative experience.

    At the opening ceremony, Governor Ayo Fayose solicited the cooperation of the lawmakers. He said the onus is on them to support his administration through quality legislations. “I need your support for the implementation of our six-point Restoration Agenda,” he said. Fayose, who was represented by his deputy, Dr. Kolapo Olusola, said the retreat became necessary to sharpen their skills in the art of lawmaking.

    He said apart from lawmaking, the legislators should give their constituencies quality representation. He also said that they should be active in their oversight functions.

    The governor said many executive bills would be forwarded to the House for passage into laws to aid good governance. Fayose said he looked forward to a harmonious working relationship the lawmakers, urging them to be loyal.

    The Speaker,  Kola Oluwawole, lamented what he described “the cat and mouse relationship” that existed between the previous House and the executive. He promised that there will be harmony under his leadership.

    He promised that the House would be very vibrant in the quality of debates, oversight functions, passage of bills and service delivery to the people.

    The retreat facilitator, Dr. Femi Omotoso, described the legislature as a political compromise between the principles of perfect democracy and the realities of indirect representation in modern complex nation-states.

    Describing the legislature as an important arm of government, Omotoso said it plays complex roles in socio-economic development.

    In his view, loyalty and dedication to duty are of utmost important to legislators, if they are to faithfully perform the assigned roles.

    In a paper titled: “The Growth and Development of Legislative Institution,” Omotoso, an Associate Professor of Political Science at the Ekiti State University, (EKSU), advocated teamwork among lawmakers at federal and state levels to ensure effective service delivery to the electorate.

    He advised the lawmakers to make laws for good governance in their states; to always work together to achieve the goals of good governance and representing the interests of their constituencies.

    The scholar, who noted that the legislature occupies the most important place in democracy, said the pooling of expertise and resources by legislators would make them fulfil their mandate to the people and make the institution stronger.

    In his paper entitled: “Legislature and Democratic Sustainability in Nigeria,”Dr. Ola Abegunde, who teaches Political Science, traced the history of the evolution of legislature in Nigeria to 1861 when the colonial government established the Legislative Council in Lagos.

    Abegunde identified the  functions of the legislature to include lawmaking, oversight function and representational function. Lamenting that the legislature has not lived up to expectation, he said:”Most of the bills passed to laws are hurriedly passed by the legislators when demands are met on such bills. For example, out of the four hundred and eighty seven (487) bills the Senate received between June 2003 and May 2007, 129 (26.49%) were executive bills, 237 (48.67%) originated with the Senate and 26 (5.34%) were sponsored by members of the House of Representatives.

    “Out of the 487 bills, 132 were passed by the Senate out of which 83 (62%) of the passed bills were executive bills and 49 (37.12%) were members’ bills”.

    According to Abegunde, the challenges facing the legislature include lack of legislative experience by members, which result in poor performance, low institutional development, lack of autonomy, godfatherism and public misconception of legislative roles.

    In his paper entitled “Legislature and Oversight Functions for Good Governance,” a lecturer in the Department of Psychology at EKSU, Dr. Ademola Owolabi, advised legislators to build “an untainted legacy of public service with patriotic enthusiasm.”He decried the misuse of oversight functions by legislators, which has dented the image of parliament before the electorate.

    He said: “Most of the committees leave the obvious to pursue shadows just to intimidate their prey to bow to pressure and then look for a way out through unholy “settlement.”

    “If you are on a committee to expose corruption and inefficiency in the interest of the entire country, you would do so dispassionately and without exposing your emotion towards the investigated.

    “In recent times, we have seen many such investigations and in the end, nothing really comes out for the benefit of the people. The whole investigation sometimes become a conduit pipe for financial waste at the detriment of the people.

    “Behind the scene, too many waters pass under the bridge and he investigators go home smiling and congratulating themselves for fooling unsuspecting Nigerians.

    “Some committee members now parade around facilities in the various departments and parastatals under their committees only to attract patronage, recognition and to acquire meal or flight tickets to choice countries of the world for personal or family pleasure.”

    Professor A. A. Agagu also of the Department of Political Science, EKSU, in his paper titled: “Legislature and Political Communication for Sustainable Development,” described communication as a complex process, which requires some tact and skills. Agagu, who explained that political communication plays a vital role in attaining sustainable development by the legislature, noted that not all political communications are effective as a result of some barriers. The barriers, according to him, could come in the use of language, tone recipient, status distance, self protection of  initiator, pressure of work and conflicting views from opponents.

    Agagu pointed out that the legislature has often lacked a good image since independence, not because they have been blackmailed by the executive, the press or the citizens, but because of their failure in ihe area of political communication.

    In his paper titled: “Legislature Accountability and Transparency”, Dr. Olugbenga Daramola, a senior lecturer in the Department of Banking and Finance, EKSU told the lawmakers that they are accountable for the use of power at their disposal. He pointed our that almost all accountability lines in a parliamentary democracy are in a hierarchical chain through project directors, program managers, departmental heads, secretaries and ministers to the elected representatives of the people.

    He stressed the need for the lawmakers to always approach the assignment of playing watchdog roles on public funds and resources with utmost sense of seriousness so as not to soil their hands and dent the image of the institution they represent.

    In a bid to ensure compliance with accountability and transparency, Daramola said the declaration of assets by legislators is compulsory under the constitution. He advised the lawmakers to live within their income.

    Former Speaker of Ondo State House of Assembly Dr. Oluwasegunota Bolarinwa took the new legislators through a mock sitting and conduct of legislative business.

    Bolarinwa, who is of the Department of Philosophy, Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba-Akoko (AAU), Ondo State, explained that consideration of motions and bills are the major pre-occupation of legislators. He said motions are meant to advise the Executives or any other persons or bodies within that jurisdiction  adding that there can be executive bills, private bills and private member bills.

    Speaking on dress code for lawmakers, Bolarinwa said legislators are qualified to sit in the hallowed chamber when they are properly dressed, adding that, when in English dress, it must be complete with tie and suit and  when wearing native attire, it must be complete with cap for men and head gear for women.

    He emphasised that a serious-minded lwamaker must always come for sittings with copies of the constitution and the House Standing Order for consultation, guidance, protection and direction.

    The former Speaker said before the commencement of the legislative business, the legislative staff must have distributed the Order Paper and Votes of Proceeding to members.

    Shedding light on how bills become laws, Bolarinwa said: “When a bill is presented for First Reading, the Speaker shall call on the Clerk of the House to read it; just for mentioning. No debate on it until the Second Reading when members shall debate the bill.

    “It may later be committed to Committee of the Whole House under Executive Session. It may be referred to a Standing Committee of the House or an Ad-Hoc Committee. This is what is referred to as committee stage.

    “It is not all bills that usually undergo committee consideration. It is also at this stage of the Second Reading that the bill may undergo Public Hearing.

    “Thereafter, the bill will undergo Third Reading which is just to direct the Clerk of the House to read it. No more debate at this level. The Speaker would have read out the adjustments made to the bill.

    “The Leader of the House will be recognized by the Speaker to move for the passage of the bill into law. Any other member of the House will be recognized by the Speaker to second the motion.

    “And it will be put to question and subsequently passed into law”.

    With the three-day retreat over, members of the Fifth Assembly in Ekiti State are expected to have learnt the art and intricacies of lawmaking and other assignments connected therewith and are now expected to hit the ground running.

    The principal officers are Speaker Oluwawole, (Moba 1); Deputy Speaker, Segun Adewumi, (Ekiti West. 1); Leader of Business, Tunji Akinyele (Oye 2); Deputy Leader, Adeniran Alagbada (Ise/Orun); Chief Whip, Sunday Akinniyi (Ikere 2) and Deputy Whip, Dayo Akinleye (Ijero).

    Other members are Afolabi Akanni (Efon), Wale Onigiobi (Ekiti Southwest 1), Tope Fasanmi (Ado 2), Sina Animasaun (Ekiti West 2), Sanya Aladeyelu (Irepodun/Ifelodun 2), Olanrewaju Olayanju (Emure), Wale Ayeni (Ikere1), Mrs. Titi Owolabi (Ikole 2), Mrs. Cecilia Dada (Ilejemeje) and Ojo-Ade Fajana (Ekiti East 1).

    The rest are Olaposi Omodara (Irepodun/Ifelodun 1), Adeniyi Adedeji (Ekiti Southwest 2), Musa Arogundade (Ado 1), Samuel Omotoso (Oye 1), Dare Pelemo (Ekiti East 2), Ayodele Fajemilehin (Gbonyin), Olayode Omotoso (Ido/Osi 1), Badejo Anifowose (Moba 2), Gboyega Aribisogan (Ikole 1) and Abiola Jeje (Ido/Osi 2).