The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, has disclosed that the amendment process of the current constitution may not be finalized before the end of the tenure of the current 9th session of the legislature by June 2023.
He stated this at the 2022 Parliamentarians Lecture organised by the National Institute for Legislative and Democratic Studies (NILDS) held in Abuja.
The lecture which was themed “Delivering on Our Contract with Nigeria”: Implementing the Legislative Agenda of the 9th House of Representatives-Progress, Challenges and way Forward.” was well attended by diverse stakeholders across the country.
Mr Gbajabiamila, who presented a paper at the event, revealed that the National Assembly had passed a raft of amendments to the constitution and advanced them to the states as required by the law. A process which he claimed to have been hindered by the state assembly.
While speaking on the achievements of the House of Representatives, Mr Gbajabiamila announced that the house had passed landmark legislation to fix the oil and gas industry.
He revealed further that the assembly has also considered and passed meaningful legislation including the Police Service Commission (Repeal and Re-enactment) Bill and the Electric Power Sector Reform Act (Amendment) Bill among others.
The Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, who was also at the event called on Mr El-Rufai to lobby with other governors and ensure the completion of the ongoing constitution review process.
He further affirmed that the lecture series was one of the laudable initiatives of NILDS geared towards bridging the gap between the electorates and their elected representatives.
While responding, Governor Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna State who was also the Chairman of the event asserted that the National Assembly and the legislature are key components and often decapitated branch of government.
He noted that lectures of this form are crucial to building the institutional strength and capacity of the National Assembly.
The governor thereafter commended the members of the National Assembly on the passage of “so many important bills” including the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) and the Company and Allied Matters Act (CAMA).
He, however, tasked the federal legislators to put on more efforts into state and community policing even as they conclude their tenure.
✍️ Timileyin Okunlola
