9th House of Representatives: Ambitious legislature in turbulent times
Since its inauguration, the Ninth House of Representatives set out to make a difference by bringing in reforms in the conduct of its activities that will make it different from its predecessor.
The House of Representatives under Speaker Femi Gbajabiamila
Since its inauguration, the Ninth House of Representatives set out to make a difference by bringing in reforms in the conduct of its activities that will make it different from its predecessor.
The emergence of Femi Gbajabiamila as its speaker and Ahmed Idris Wase as his deputy gave the executive a leeway to have allies in the house to push in demands which were on many occasions passed with little scrutiny.
This earned the house, like senate, the “rubber stamp” toga or “appendage of the executive” alias.
However, the spokesman of the lower chamber of the National Assembly, Benjamin Okezie Kalu, said the ninth house had ensured that the bills passed provided real solutions to real issues, adding that the house passed bills to end estimated electricity billing, guarantee interest-free student loans for higher education, provide a better labour environment for Nigerian workers, strengthen agriculture and diversify the economy, provide a favourable business environment for MSMEs, among others.
Some of the bills, he added, included the Electric Power Sector Reform Act (Amendment) Bill; the Physically Challenged (Empowerment) Bill; National Orientation Agency Act (Amendment) Bill; Labour Act (Amendment) Bill; Finance Bill; Students Loan (Access to Higher Education) Bill; Federal Roads Bill 2019; Public Procurement Act (Amendment) Bill; the Company and Allied Matters Bill and the Emergency Economic Stimulus Bill 2020.
First Step
The first step taken by the house, Kalu said, was the passage of a bill to change the budget cycle to January-December, explaining that the decision was a promise made by the house to make budget implementation more realistic and systematic.
Kalu further said, “In line with our promise for national budget reforms, the house took the pain to ensure that for the first time in over 20 years, the appropriation bill was passed in time to return the national budget to a January-December cycle.
“To ensure better budget funding and promote ease of business for MSMEs, we passed the finance bill in time to accompany the 2020 budget.”
The Ninth House of Representatives also considered and passed many bills and motions despite intermittent breaks and other bottlenecks brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic which almost crippled its activities in 2020.
The house within the same period also treated motions to address insecurity and tackle corruption. The NDDC probe became the climax with the fainting of the head of the dissolved commission’s Interim Management Committee (IMC) that attracted public interest.
The interest was the amount of money allegedly embezzled by the commission’s management, contract scams and the accusations against the Chairman, House Committee on Niger Delta, Rep. Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, by the NDDC management; which he denied.
Enter COVID-19
The COVID-19 pandemic which devastated the socio-economic well-being of Nigerians just as it affected the rest of the world marked a turning point in the activities of the house. It forced the house to suspend plenary for two weeks in the first instance, adopt preventive measures by restricting access to its chambers; just allowing limited staff to come to work.
These measures brought about nearly a complete shutdown of activities which affected the performance of the house as regards passage of bills and motions. Most non-COVID-19 related legislations were suspended while members concentrated on measures and legislations to curb the pandemic and its effects.
The first casualties of the pandemic were the House Legislative Agenda and its controversial budget. The agenda was an ambitious document launched to give direction to the lower parliament based on some important thematic areas aimed at providing excellent legislation for Nigerians.
The pandemic forced the house to review the legislative agenda and water down some of the plans as the economy shrank and the budget had to be reduced by 20 per cent across board, leading to the reduction of the controversial N37bn budgeted for the National Assembly complex renovation to N9bn; which also generated condemnation from Nigerians.
Despite the frantic effort by the National Assembly to convince Nigerians on the issue, the proposal was rejected as a misplaced priority amid economic downturn.
While speaking on the controversy, the house spokesman said, “While this feedback was misdirected, as the project falls under the auspices of the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA), it is instructive to state that the cost has been reduced to N9bn in the revised 2020 budget; thanks to the engagement of the Nigerian public.”
The House of Representatives introduced and passed a bill titled: “Emergency Economic Stimulus Bill 2020”, on March 24, 2020, when the socio-economic impacts of the pandemic started manifesting as government put in measures to curb its spread.
The bill was passed to give a quick response to the pandemic and help businesses and individuals to scale through the challenging time. Passage of the bill was to stimulate the nation’s economy and cushion the effects of the pandemic on businesses which reduced the incomes of Nigerians and brought hardship. It was to also provide temporary relief to companies and individuals to alleviate the adverse financial consequences of a slowdown in economic and business activities.
The main objective of the bill was to provide tax rebate for employers and business owners; defer payment of mortgages under the National Housing Fund (NHF) and waive import duties on medicine and medical goods, among others.
Controversies
However, despite its seeming success in bringing succour to Nigerians, the house courted controversy through the Control of Infectious Disease Bill 2020. The bill, sponsored by the Speaker, Gbajabiamila, sought to replace the Quarantine Act 2007.
However, its quick passage through first and second readings by the house in April caused widespread outrage and resentments across Nigeria.
The Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC) and 39 other non-profit organisations argued that the bill “violates key principles of simple, clear and unambiguous legislative drafting, leaving significant amount of discretion on the implementing authorities and limiting the rights of citizens and relevant institutions.”
The outcries forced the house to retract its steps and it conduct a public hearing on the bill.
Kalu disclosed then that, “We recall the public outcry regarding the Control of Infectious Diseases Bill introduced to the house in response to the gaps observed in our Quarantine Act.
“Fortunately, this outcry, though premature, allowed us the opportunity to reassure Nigerians of our commitment to continuous public engagement in our activities as the bill is currently undergoing public hearing with the extensive participation of relevant stakeholders.”
However, even the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), the Nigeria Medical Association (NMA) and other stakeholders that attended the public hearing maintained their stance as they picked holes in the draft bill; suggesting ways to make it better and more democratic.
Preparations for 2021
As 2020 comes to an end, preparations for 2021 began in earnest in the House of Representatives. After the presentation of N13.08tn, the house started budget defence as Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) appeared before its committees to defend their 2020 budget performance and the 2021 budget estimates.
The exercise is being concurrently conducted alongside plenary, oversight functions and other legislative activities.
The committees have almost concluded their interactions with the MDAs and submitted their reports to the House Committee on Appropriations as disclosed by the house spokesman recently.
The passage of the budget is expected anytime soon after the end of 2020.
How the house will fare in the coming year may not be different from 2020 looking at the dynamics and the seeming carryover of the effects of the pandemic which may be with us for some time.