Why bill for Institute of Environmental Practitioners was opposed

The bill which seeks to establish a body known as Institute of Environmental Practitioners of Nigeria was recently opposed by some individuals and groups at a public hearing at the National Assembly. The bill, sponsored by the Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Environment and Habitat,  Obinna Chidoka, which seeks to regulate and control all […]

The bill which seeks to establish a body known as Institute of Environmental Practitioners of Nigeria was recently opposed by some individuals and groups at a public hearing at the National Assembly.

The bill, sponsored by the Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Environment and Habitat,  Obinna Chidoka, which seeks to regulate and control all aspects of environmental practice in Nigeria was strongly opposed by environmental managers who also called for discontinuation of the bill.

Daily Trust obtained a copy of the memorandum by the Environmental Management Association of Nigeria (EMAN) for the discontinuation of the bill which states that passing the bill into law would be a breach to Section 315 of the 1999 Constitution.

According to the document, the bill was first presented to the Senate as a bill to establish the Chartered Institute of Environmental Practitioners of Nigeria but was discontinued after it was observed that the provision of the bill if passed into law would be a breach of Section 315 of the 1999 Constitution as amended.

It also noted that the same bill was represented in the House of Representatives as an Act to provide for the establishment of the Institute of Environmental Practitioners of Nigeria and other Related matters (HB.13.02.450) and was discontinued for same reason.

The National President of EMAN, Dr Emmanuel Ating, disclosed that the bill came out in 2001 produced and sponsored by Shell and that they wrote to Shell in 2005 explaining their disagreement that it cannot come to Nigeria and give laws to regulate its practice.

He said in the current legislative period, 2015 to 2019, the same bill has been represented with the same name, as a bill for an Act to provide for the establishment of the Institute of Environmental Practitioners of Nigeria and other related matters, 2017.

Dr Ating said the provisions of the bill clearly showed that the promoters did not know basic minimum requirement for the establishment of a professional body. The sponsor of the bill, according to the document, did not mention the specific academic programme or discipline approved by the National Universities Commission (NUC) that he wishes to professionlise or regulate its practice through the bill. Dr Ating observed that Section 5C (i-iv) of the draft bill stipulates more than one academic programme or discipline as an acceptable qualification for membership of the institute and that it is a breach of the 1999 constitution. 

He explained that there is existing legislation on environmental practitioners and that if the proponents of the bill and its sponsors want to establish a regulative council, it’s for them to choose a specific academic discipline they want because that is the starting point, which is always formed by graduates of the profession.

“If the institute of environmental practitioners does not have any programme specific to it in Nigerian university system, there is no way then to determine the certification of the institute,” he said. He said further that environmental management certification must be based on the curriculum but regulation council is trained to certify those that have been properly trained in school and having the experience. 

“They need tell us the name of the degree because getting a regulatory council needs a degree and specific qualification for membership and not being general,” he added.

Another reason for the opposition is that Section 5C (vi) of the bill makes provision for non-graduates which implies acceptance of secondary school certificate and the first school leaving certificate holders as environmental practitioners. 

He said, “To make matters worse in the bill, they made provisions for non-graduates, this is most unfortunate.”

The group in the memorandum however, urged the members of the House Committee on Environment and Habitat to consider that the term environmental practice and environmental practitioners are not the name of specific professional course or academic discipline in the Nigerian university system or a particular profession. 

“It is a generic name for architects, town planners, land surveyors, engineers, lawyers, environmental health workers among others. It cannot be used as the name or title for professional regulatory and registration council because it does not refer to any specific,” the document reads.