By Kemi Yesufu

The House of Representatives resumed on Tuesday, January 10 leaving behind 2016, a year that would go down in history as one of the toughest for the eighth House. 

 Speaker Yakubu Dogara in his welcome address seemed to seek the goodwill of the public right from the beginning of the New Year. He said Nigerians have identified the 2017 budget as one of the tools through which the Federal Government can pull the country out of recession, hence the need to have it passed in a transparent and timely manner.  

Dogara stressed that  members must be committed to ensuring that work on 2017 Appropriation Bill is carried out “professionally”.  

“The 2017 budget remains the major tool to re-jig our economy. This is in addition to other fiscal and monetary policies. 

“We must brace up and work assiduously and conscientiously to give Nigerians a budget that will not only lift us out of recession but kick-start the needed expeditious journey into Nigeria’s prosperity. 

“ We pledge to reform the budget process. To this end therefore, we would ensure that the procedure and process of consideration and passage of the 2017 budget is transparent, inclusive and professionally handled. 

“The details of the budget should be debated and passed in plenary to avoid those needless pitfalls that normally characterise the budget process,” he emphasised.

He maintained that the House must play an integral role to end the hardship of the preceding year, that left many Nigerians on the edge. 

“The year 2016 presented us with its peculiar challenges especially in the area of security and the economy. It was the year in which our dear country eventually slipped into recession resulting in grievous social stress for the citizenry. It was also the year in which terrorism in the North East, militancy in the South South, the despicable phenomenon of kidnapping as well as the flash of agitations bared their murderous fangs – visiting death, pain and anguish on the populace. 

“In all these, it is gratifying to note that the fundamentals of nationhood remain strong, robust and promising. We commend the gallantry, ingenuity and professionalism of our armed forces and security agencies, the political will of the Buhari-led government and the unbending resilience of the Nigerian people”, he said. 

The Speaker further stated that it has become necessary for the House to hasten action on bills that would trigger economic growth and development , before “active politicking starts”.  

“ Critical bills designed to stimulate and streamline our economy such as the Public Procurement Act amendment, Federal Competition Bill, Petroleum Industry bill, etc will receive expeditious consideration. Important bills on Constitution alteration and Amendment to the Electoral Act also deserve expeditious consideration and passage”, the Speaker said.

On the recent killings in Southern Kaduna, Zamfara, Benue and Plateau states, he described those involved in the killings as enemies of Nigeria, assuring that President Muhammadu Buhari will ensure that lasting solutions are  found with those found guilty fully prosecuted.

  “Having met with Mr President, I am happy to report that I am satisfied with the response of the President on these matters. I share the view that finding solutions to these crises must not be left to Kaduna State Government alone or Mr President. 

“An enduring solution can only be attained if all of us –  all Nigerians regardless of ethnic groupings – northerners, southerners, Christians, Muslims, politicians, the apolitical, traditional rulers and religious leaders accept the fact that we are responsible and rise to confront and rid our communities of these evils,” he assured. 

Dogara also drew the attention of his colleagues to the recent spate of impeachment of state Houses of Assembly Speakers, arguing that it must be condemned by lovers of democracy.  

“The recent spate of impeachment of Speakers of Houses of Assembly gives cause for grave concern.

“While we recognise the constitutional right of the legislature to conduct its internal affairs including the right to hire and fire it’s leadership, it presents a different scenario where such leadership hiring and firing are rife with accusations and insinuations of external influence and also devoid of extant procedure,” he stated.

The Speaker went beyond the shores of the country in his agenda setting for the House, commending the  sub-regional body, ECOWAS for insisting that Gambian president, Yahya Jammeh peacefully hand over power.

He urged President Muhammdu Buhari  and other ECOWAS leaders to ensure that Gambia experiences a peaceful transfer of power. 

Buhari and other leaders from the sub-region  met with Jammeh in Gambia in a last ditch effort to convince him to hand over power, but their advice was ignored. 

Dogara said: “in Gambia, even though peaceful elections took place, the outgoing President Yahaya Jammeh, has recanted his pledge to hand over power peacefully after losing the elections. The situation in Gambia constitutes a serious dent on the rising profile of the development of democracy on the African continent. 

“We wish to commend the President of Nigeria and indeed the leadership of ECOWAS for their principled stance on the matter. The recent official position that ECOWAS will ensure peaceful transition in The Gambia is most reassuring. We understand this to imply peaceful transition simplicita but also the enforcement of peaceful transition should the need arise.  

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“As a foremost democratic institution, the legislature will stand firmly behind the government of Nigeria as well as ECOWAS in ensuring that no individual leader on the African continent engages in conduct prejudicial to the growth of Africa’s democracy”.

Just 48 hours after Dogara assured on the National Assembly’s stout support for ECOWAS leaders insistence that Jammeh leaves, the House called on President Buhari to offer Jammeh political asylum in Nigeria. 

The resolution of the House was sequel to the adoption of a motion by Sani Zorro entitled: “Call to Offer Safe Haven to President Yahaya Jammeh as part of Nigeria’s mediation initiative for The Gambia”.

Zoro said: “We are all aware that the clock is ticking fast for the survival of democracy in the country and there is therefore the need to intensify preventive diplomacy to save The Gambia from descending into chaos with dire consequences for the West African sub-region, as a result of a likely armed conflict and mass displacement of persons.” 

The lawmaker noted that Nigeria had in recent past played similar roles in restoring peace and settling conflicts in various Central, Southern and West African nations, including the Congo, Chad, Liberia and Sierra-Leone. 

“We cannot claim to be unaware of Nigeria’s policy of extending safe-haven status to endangered African leaders as part of dispute settlement and that such gestures had, in the past been extended to Presidents Felix Malloum of Chad, Siad Barre of Somalia, Thabo Mbeki of the ANC, Messrs’ Charles Taylor and Yomi Johnson of Liberia and several other leaders.

“The asylum option has become more necessary because military action is being considered as a last resort to take out Jammeh but as a member of the sub-regional body, all efforts to prevent a conflict should be explored by Nigeria”, Zoro said. 

House Committee Chairperson on Foreign Relations, Nnenna Elendu-Ukeje who spoke in favour of the motion said granting Jammeh asylum was in tandem with the long held Africa as-the centre-piece of foreign policy thrust of Nigeria. 

She further said giving the outgoing Gambian president the option of coming to Nigeria should be considered as one of the sacrifices the country must make as part of playing its leadership role in West Africa and the continent as a whole.

 Many have hailed the intervention from the House as proactive and deft as it gave President Buhari a strong backing to offer Jammeh a dignified way out. 

Members also seem to have taken the first real steps to working on the 2017 budget as relevant committees such as the Finance, Legislative Budget and Research,  Appropriation, Aids, Loans & Debt Management as well as that of National Planning & Economic Development hosted ministers on Monday, January 16 to analyse the Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) 2017-2019  and Fiscal Strategy Paper (FSP). 

Present at the interactive session were the Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mines and Solid Minerals Development, Office of the Accountant General of the Federation, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation,   (NNPC) and Nigerian Customs Service.

Others were Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Debt Management Office, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), and the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR).

Members at the session didn’t mince words as they asked the Federal Government to set a more realistic official exchange rate, saying the current rate of N305/ dollar for the 2017 budget will do the economy more harm than good. 

The lawmakers who accused the Executive of not consulting widely in coming up with the 2017-2019 MTEF also queried the plan of the Federal Government on domestic borrowing, arguing that it will lead to a paucity of funds among already struggling real sector operators and Small and Medium Enterprises whose growth is critical to the country moving out of recession.

They also expressed worry that the government was not doing much to rein in inflation which presently stands at 18.55  percent even as they said,  the parameters in the budget is different from that in the MTEF initially submitted to the National Assembly. 

Probably energised by the high expectations that come with a new year, the House boldly delved into controversy around the Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria (FRC) with speculation that the Green Chambers may have commenced the move to amend the Council’s Act. 

The House directed the Council to suspend the implementation of its code of governance for non-profit organisations, churches and mosques which placed a 20- year tenure limit for heads of these organisations. The controversial law led to the resignation of the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), Pastor Enoch Adeboye.

 The House mandated its committees on Delegated Legislation and Public Accounts to conduct a detailed public hearing on the FRC and report back to the House within four weeks, for further legislative action.  

The motion to debate the controversy was raised under matters of urgent public importance by Minority Leader, Leo Ogor, with lawmakers taking turns to express worry that Section 73 of the FRCN Act was abused by the former Executive Secretary of the Council, Jim Obazee. 

With investigations into allegations of mismanagement, the House started 2017 with a big splash, as it  summoned the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Ibrahim Idris over allegations of the misappropriation of about N7.2 billion allocated to the force in the 2016 budget for the procurement of Armoured Personnel Carriers and rehabilitation of 102 police stations.

The lawmakers said the alleged misappropriation is a violation of the 2016 Appropriation Act, the Fiscal Responsibility Act and the Public Procurement Act.

The House said Idris has to explain why the sum of N1.2 billion approved in the Appropriation Act of 2016 for the purchase of 10 numbers of Armoured Personnel Carriers by the Nigeria Police Force was diverted for the purchase of 64 Toyota Hiace Commuter vehicles without the approval of the National Assembly.