Tag: Reps

The House of Representatives has mandated its Committee on Public Assets, chaired by Ademorin Kuye, and the Committee on Special Duties, led by Kabir Ibrahim, to investigate and assess the performance of Public-Private Partnership (PPP) initiatives and concession agreements in the country

This directive came after a motion was presented by Saidu Abdullahi.

The House expressed concern over the dwindling revenues that should accrue to the Federation Account and highlighted the substantial deficit in infrastructure development.

It noted that the deficit has far-reaching consequences on the execution of the budget and the country’s overall economic stability due to its heavy reliance on oil revenue.

Recognizing the vital role of the private sector in infrastructure development, the House also acknowledged its extensive involvement in various projects such as roads, railways, airports, housing, and power generation.

It stated that the partnerships have played a crucial role in driving economic growth and prosperity.

The House also raised concerns about investor participation and interest, which have been hindered by a lack of coordination between government agencies and the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC).

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It added that the lack of coordination has resulted in delays in the commencement of several projects.

The committees are thus asked to recommend strategies to enhance the country’s infrastructure development.

A timeframe has been set for the committee to report its findings, which will be crucial in determining future legislative actions required to rectify the issues within the PPP frameworks.

This investigation is expected to ensure greater transparency and efficiency in the management of public-private partnerships in Nigeria, ensuring that the country’s infrastructure meets the needs of its citizens and supports sustainable economic growth.

The House of Representatives on Wednesday, February 7, mandated its committees on population and anti-corruption to investigate the delay in the release of National Identity Cards from 2012 to date.

The committees are to invite the Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Bosun Tijani, and the Director-General of the National Identity Card Management Commission, Abisoye Coker-Odusote.

The Committees are to report back within four weeks for further legislative action.

This resolution followed the adoption of a motion titled, “Need to Investigate the National Identity Cards Released from 2012 to Date” moved by Hon. Muhammed Dan Abba Shehu.

The House noted that the National Identity Card Management Commission (NIMC) as established by law is charged with the responsibility of collecting, managing, and controlling citizen data for effective economic planning and developmental growth, but the reverse is the case in Nigeria.

It said in 2015, the National Identity Management Commission and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) agreed to immediately implement the Presidential directive on harmonization and integration of Biometric Data capture by government parastatals.

The House said the directive aimed to improve biometric data collection and storage across government agencies, collaborating with NIMC and INEC for efficient voter registration and enhanced identity management.

The House also noted that in readiness for the 2015 general elections, the government made deliberate efforts to capture eligible voters through the National Identity Card, collaborating with INEC to achieve its core mandate for better electoral results and official usage, this strategy was not achieved, causing high expectations among citizens and the government.

The House said it was aware that Nigerians have shown resilience in assisting the government in obtaining accurate database information through the National Identity Card Management Commission, despite the government’s huge resources for speeding up the process and enhancing electoral transparency and accountability in 2015 and subsequent elections.

It worried that the Commission’s headquarters and its state counterparts are ineffective in delivering the national assignment to the people, particularly in releasing the National identity cards, due to government neglect of operational activities and directives for the benefit of all Nigerians.

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The House was concerned that despite the availability of resources for rapid production and electoral transparency, Nigerians continue to encounter obstacles to updating the National Identity Card Management Commission’s database information due to a lack of attention from the government and ineffective service delivery.

The motion reads: “The House is worried that the Commission received annual budgetary allocations in 2017, 2018, and 2019 to fulfill its mandate, but efforts to produce and release national identity cards have been unsuccessful requiring urgent intervention and attention of the Federal government.

“The House is cognizant that government intervention in restructuring the Commission is necessary for effective service delivery, revitalizing the Commission’s operations and re-affirming the goal to provide accurate data and identification documents to the citizens thus restoring the confidence of the Nigerian populace.”

Worried about the rising insecurity in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), the House of Representatives on Wednesday, February 7, resolved to invite the National Security Adviser (NSA) and heads of all security agencies in the country for an emergency security briefing and strategy.

The House, however, did not give any specific date for the security Chiefs to appear before it.

The House also asked the minister of the Federal Capital Territory to install security cameras and other security gadgets around the FCT and equip security personnel with modern security equipment to combat the rising and frightening insecurity within the Territory and its environs, including the use of drones.

Adopting a motion of urgent public importance sponsored by Dominic Okafor (APGA, Anambra), the House asked heads of all security agencies to collaborate among themselves, train and set up special units within their formations to track and clamp down on the Criminal elements within and around the Territory.

In addition, the House asked the Security Agencies to immediately commence the use of the registered National Identification Numbers (NIN) in their technology to trace and curb insecurity across the Country.

Moving his motion, Okafor reminded his colleagues that the Federal Capital Territory remains the seat of the federal government from where national policies are formulated, headquarters of federal government agencies are domiciled, International edifices are located, the majority of foreigners and visitors are residents, etc.

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He disclosed that the Nasarawa state government has announced plans to install security cameras across their state to curb the distressing security challenges in the state which ought to be replicated in Abuja being the Centre of the Nation and should be the safest place in the country.

He lamented that the level of insecurity raving the Centre of Unity in recent times, is, to say the least, very disappointing and unbefitting of a Federal Capital City where there are escalating cases of “one chance “, armed robberies, banditry and rampant kidnappings and killings.

He said further that the last administration, through the Ministry of Communication and Digital Economy, compulsorily registered and linked National Identification Numbers (NIN) with Telephone Numbers of Nigerians and further linked the same with various bank accounts with the main purpose of curbing the rising spate of insecurity in the Country.

He said further that since the compulsory registration and linking of the National Identification Numbers (NIN) by the Federal Government, there has never been a time it was deployed to tackle or address the pressing and scary state of insecurity in the Federal Capital Territory or the Nation at large.

Okafor also said that since criminal elements in and around the Federal Capital Territory are speedily evolving from the norm to advanced techniques of criminality, the security agencies of government ought to urgently move to digitalize their operations to return the Federal Capital Territory to its safest haven in the Country with the use of Drones, Closed- Circuit Television (CCTV) and other modern sophisticated security gadgets.

He said restructuring the Nation economically and politically as is obtainable in most Western Economies is the next most appropriate step the Federal Government of Nigeria should go in a bit to address the teething economic, political, and security concerns of Nigerians.

The House of Representatives on Wednesday, February 7, passed for a second reading, the 2022 Electoral Acts amendment bill, seeking to ensure the conduct of the general elections in one day among other amendments.

The bill sponsored by Francis Waive (APC, Delta) wants the Presidential, Governorship, Senatorial, House of Representatives, and State Houses of Assembly elections conducted in one day as a way of reducing cost and the bandwagon effect often associated with the nation’s elections.

Waive said the amendment to the Electoral Act became necessary given the huge litigations associated with the 2023 general elections, especially with the conclusion of litigations arising from the conduct of the elections.

He said the 2022 Electoral Act was enacted by the National Assembly to ensure the credibility of the nation’s electoral process and ensure that the results arising from the use of the law in the conduct of the election will be credible and acceptable to the Nigerian people.

According to him, following the implementation of the law, there was the need to correct some obvious defects in the law and get the nation prepared for the next level of elections.

Waive said section 10 (3) of the 2022 Electoral Act need to be amended to ensure that the Commission will conduct a full-scale voter registration every 10 years alongside the continuous registration of those who clocked 18.

He said the amendment to the section became necessary as the revalidation exercise conducted by the commission at intervals is not enough to remove those not eligible to be on the voters register, adding that the current system of revalidation cannot give Nigerians a clean register.

He said the law also needs to be amended to reduce the cost of elections in the country, adding that conducting the elections on two separate days had put so much pressure on the Nigerian people and their businesses as the country is always shut down for the elections.

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The Delta lawmaker said the law should be amended to ensure that all elections such as the Presidential, Senatorial, House of Representatives, Governorship, and State Houses of Assembly elections are conducted on the same day.

He said: “if the country can conduct three elections in one day, we can also conduct the five elections on the same”, added that doing that will save a lot of money and prevent the bandwagon effect associated with the nation’s elections.

He also proposed an amendment to section 60 of the Act which deals with the electronic transmission of election results, saying the current provisions were not specific enough and have left some loopholes which he said were exploited by litigants after the 2023 elections.

He said the provision in the law should be made more specific to allow the Presiding Officer to transmit electronically, the results of an election as well as the accreditation process, adding that the parliament should not make laws that are vague.

He lamented that the last election was dogged by what he described as frivolous cases, saying “Some people had more than three cases at the tribunal and they had to pursue these cases to the last. You find out that someone who got 1000 votes will be going to court to challenge someone who scored 60,000 votes and you wonder what he intends to gain.

“Some governorship cases went up the Supreme Court. The law should impose heavy fines on those who bring frivolous petitions before the courts. This will discourage such acts, thereby reducing the cost of elections.”

Supporting the amendment, Jossy Onuakalosi (LP, Lagos) said elections is meant for the people to elect their representatives and not for the courts to overturn such elections, adding that everything possible should be done to correct the anomaly.

He also said the law should be amended to address delays experienced as a result of glitches in the system, adding that electronic transmission of results will present a large number of litigations.

Also contributing, Aliyu Sani Madaki (NNPP, Kano) faulted the provision that tends to disqualify eligible voters who are not able to be accredited as a result of the failure of the machine to accredit them, adding that such persons should not be punished for the fault of INEC.

Madaki said the law should find a way of ensuring that such people are allowed to vote, an argument that was faulted by the sponsor of the bill who said if such is allowed, there is the tendency that it will be abused.

The bill has been referred to the House Committee on Electoral Matters who are expected to conduct a public hearing on it and other such electoral amendment bills before the House.

The House not Representatives on Wednesday, February 7, resolved to investigate the act of certificate racketeering by Nigerian students in collusion with some officials from Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) in Nigeria with the view to identifying both foreign and indigenous institutions involved in certificate racketeering in Nigeria.

The House also resolved to investigate the decision of the National Agency for Food, Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) to ban the production and sale of alcoholic beverages in small sachets.

This followed two separate motions on notice sponsored by Hassan Abubakar Fulata and Pascal Agbodike.

The House said the investigation will identify students who have benefited from such institutions and their campuses in Nigeria in the last ten years and recommend the necessary reviews, amendments, or repeals of laws, policies, rules, protocols, or procedures to be adopted for obtaining licenses, admissions, international passports, screening and authentication of results or certificates, and ensuring proper documentation before participating in the National Youth Service Corps.

Moving the motion, Fulata recalled that in the last two months, the Country has been plagued by a scandal involving Umar Audu, a journalist who went undercover to investigate a booming business, where he obtained a Certificate and transcript from the Ecole Superieure de Gestion et de Technologies, ESGT, Cotonou, Benin Republic Cotonou, and participated in the NYSC scheme within a month.

He said: “According to the journalist, it was craftily achieved with the active involvement and connivance of government officials in the Federal Ministry of Education, the Nigerian Immigration Service, and the National Youth Service Corps.

“The journalist recounted his experience when the agent gave the option of studying either for a year or a month, but he opted for the one-month option, in which he obtained a certificate and transcript without attending lectures at the said University or leaving Nigeria.”

He said the Federal Ministry of Education is supposed to authenticate all the Certificates obtained abroad before allowing participation in the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC).

According to him, officials of Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) ensure due process and compliance at all levels with national and international protocols, processes, and rules before, during, and after obtaining any certificates.

He said: “There are MDAs charged with the responsibilities of ensuring the smooth and seamless processes of each candidate studying within or outside the country, such as verifying the genuineness of institutions, courses, and authentication of certificates, which are the responsibilities of the Federal Ministry of Education and the National Universities Commission (NUC).”

He said over the years, foreign institutions have graduated Nigerians in different fields of human endeavours, including medical doctors, pharmacists, laboratory scientists, lecturers, and workers in the public and private sectors rendering myriad services.

He expressed concern that the recent development has not only put a question mark on the quality of the certificates and capacity of graduates from these universities but has also tarnished the image of the country’s educational system.

He said failure to identify and prosecute institutions involved in certificate racketeering, their masterminds, and students could harm Nigeria’s socio-political and economic development, encouraging patronage and posing a threat to the country’s development.

Also at plenary, the House resolved to investigate the basis and circumstances surrounding the ban imposed on the production of beverages in sachets and small bottles in Nigeria by the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC).

Moving the motion, Pascal Agbodike informed the House that NAFDAC had announced its decision to stop the registration of beverages in small sachets and bottles in January 2024 when the Director General of the Agency informed the public at the agency will ensure that the validity of renewal of already registered products will not exceed January 2024.

He said the decision to ban the registration of beverages in small sachets and bottles runs counter to the spirit and letter of the 1999 Constitution and the Economic Recovery Plan of the current administration.

He argued that given the numerous economic challenges confronting poor Nigerians, the ban on the production of the said beverages will work more havoc and cause job losses for over 50% of the workers in Nigeria.

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He also spoke of the need to encourage the sustainability of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), which are the greatest employer of labour in Nigeria, employing over 84% of the workforce in Nigeria, adding that NAFDAC’s policy to place a ban on the production of beverages in small sachets and bottles will be counterproductive.

He said the decision to place a ban on the production of beverages in small sachets and bottles will encourage unscrupulous elements to go about the production of such drinks and products without recourse to NAFDAC.

He further argued that the ban on the registration of beverages in small sachets and bottles will inflict more hardship on Nigerians whose livelihoods come from the production and sale of such beverages and will, in the long run, plunge more Nigerians into unemployment and economic hardship and cause them to suffer more given the current subsidy removal regime.

• Health Ministry asked to refund N10b

The House of Representatives Committee on Public Accounts yesterday asked the Federal Ministry of Industries, Trade and Investments to refund the N75 billion allocated to it as COVID-19 intervention funds to the coffers of the government.

 The committee also asked the Federal Ministry of Health to return to government coffers N10 billion meant for vaccine production, which was not utilised for that purpose.

 The committee gave the directive to the two ministries at the resumed investigative hearing on the expenditure of the COVID-19 intervention fund by MDAs.

 The committee frowned at the refusal of the Ministry of Industries to honour its invitation on three occasions without any excuse.

 Adopting a motion by Bassey Akiba (LP, Cross Rivers), the committee asked the ministry to refund the money appropriated to it during the intervention on COVID-19 pandemic in the country.

It said the money should be refunded with immediate effect to government coffers.

  The committee adopted the motion after it was seconded and directed that the ministry refund the funds to the Federal Government.

Committee Chairman Bamidele Salam (PDP, Osun) had informed members that despite series of invitation extended to the ministry, its officials had failed to respond or appear before the committee.

 Salam said: “The Federal Ministry of Industries, Trade and Investments got N75 billion as COVID-19 intervention funds. The Public Account Committee has sent an invitation to the Ministry of Industries, Trade and Investments three times, and none of the invitations has been honoured.

  “The Federal Ministry of Trade was to make their appearance yesterday. That was the last opportunity given to them, but there was no such appearance. The sum of N75 billion was appropriated to them.

 “A former Permanent Secretary and the current Permanent Secretary are affected by this motion to refund N75 billion to the Federal Government as COVID-19 intervention which, as far as we are concerned, has not been expended.”

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 The committee also directed the Federal Ministry of Health to return N10 billion meant for the production of COVID-19 vaccines but was not utilised to the government.

 The Permanent Secretary in the ministry, Daju Kachallom, had informed the committee that the funds were domiciled in the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation.

 The committee said the funds should be returned, adding that if the ministry needed it for anything else, they should make a fresh request to the National Assembly for proper appropriation.

 Also, the committee asked the Chief Executive Officer of the Rural Electrification Agency (REA), Salihijo Ahmed, to submit documents on the utilisation of the agency’s COVID-19 intervention funds before the close of work today.

 The Public Accounts Committee is investigating 56 Ministries Departments and Agencies (MDAs) on the utilisation of COVID-19 intervention funds after a resolution on a motion by Zakariah Dauda Nyampa (PDP, Taraba).

 Also, the Managing Director of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), Mrs. Olubunmi Oluwaseun Kuku, who attended yesterday’s hearing, said the agency got N7.7 billion COVID-19 intervention fund.

The 10th House of Representatives has passed for the second reading the Bills seeking to establish 47 new federal universities in various states in its first six months.

The House has also passed for the second reading 56 other Bills to establish Federal Medical Centres (FMCs) across the country.

The Nation reports that the Bills are part of about 962 proposed laws that were passed by the House for first reading in the last six months after its inauguration.

The House is also said to be considering some other Bills to establish about 32 Federal Colleges of Education, 11 Federal Colleges of Agriculture and five Federal Polytechnics, besides those already in existence.

There are currently 45 Federal universities, 22 FMCs, 27 Federal Colleges of Education and 40 Polytechnics across the country.

It was learnt that some of the Bills, which were passed by the Ninth Assembly but either did not get concurrence from the Senate or were not signed by the President, have either been reconsidered and passed or are currently awaiting consideration by the House.

Several others are awaiting a debate on the general principles and passage for second reading, when the House resumes from its Christmas break.

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The universities being considered include those of Science and Technology, Agriculture, Medical Science, Sport, Aviation, among others.

The House is also said to be considering various Bills to establish colleges of vocational and skills acquisition, colleges of entrepreneurial studies, cancer research centres, among others.

A study of the House’s Order Paper listing the institutions and other Bills under consideration showed that Lagos State, for example, has requested for the establishment of three new Federal Medical Centres, besides the existing one.

Addressing members of the House before going on the Christmas break, House Speaker Tajudeen Abbas said the Green Chamber received and considered 962 Bills, 500 motions, and 153 petitions in six months.

The Speaker said of these numbers, 120 Bills had passed the second reading and were undergoing further review and fine-tuning to address some of the concerns raised during the debates.

He added that another 120 Bills had been referred to committees for in-depth analysis.

Abbas said: “We have also successfully passed many other Bills, which have been transmitted to the Senate for concurrence.

“Notable among these Bills are: the Electricity Act (Amendment) Bill, 2023; the Federal Audit Service Act (Amendment) Bill, 2023; 2022 Supplementary Appropriation Act (Amendment) Bill, 2023; and the Oath Act (Repeal and Enactment) Bill, 2023.

“Other critical Bills passed by the House include the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons Bill, 2023; Federal Fire and Rescue Service Bill, 2023; Administration of Criminal Justice Act (Repeal and Enactment) Bill, 2023; Niger Delta Development Commission Act (Amendment) Bill, 2023; Nigerian Medical Research Council (Establishment) Bill, 2023; Nigerian Peace Corps (Establishment) Bill, 2023; and more recently, the South East Development Commission (Establishment) Bill, 2023.

“The Defence Industries Corporation of Nigeria (Repeal and Re-enactment) Bill 2023, which we passed, was assented to by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on November 23, 2023. It repealed the 1964 legislation and replaced it with a more contemporary legislation that empowers the Defence Corporation to manufacture, store and dispose of ordinance. All these Bills are intended to provide immediate relief and long-term solutions to the challenges that have plagued our society.

“Through these Bills, we aim to empower our citizens, enhance social justice, promote economic growth, and promote peace and security.”