Nigeria Senate Kicks as Buhari Rejects Bill Seeking Legislative Powers to Summon President, Governors

Nigeria’s Senate on Tuesday, lamented President Muhammadu Buhari’s refusal to sign the constitution amendment bills especially the one which seeks to empower lawmakers to summon the president and governors.

The President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, while presiding over the plenary, said the rejected legislation was one of the 18 constitution alteration bill forwarded to Buhari by the National Assembly for assent.

Buhari had on Friday last week, assented to 16 out of 35 constitution alterations bills transmitted to him for assent by the National Assembly.

The most striking of the assented 16 bills according to him, was the fifth alteration bill number six which makes provisions for financial independence of State Houses of Assembly and Judiciary.

Others he added, were those that has to do with power devolutions in the areas of moving Railway services , Correctional Centres and power generation and distribution , from the exclusive list to concurrent list .

He however said that 19 bills that were not assented to, by the president would still be pursued vigorously by both Chambers of the National Assembly for that purpose.

The first of such 19 bills not assented to by Buhari was the fifth alteration bill number 24, which sought for an Act to Alter the Second Schedule to the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999.

The bill seeks to empower the National Assembly and State Houses of Assembly to summon the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and Governors of States to answer questions on issues which the National and State Houses of Assembly have powers to make.

Also alteration bill number 7 which sought for an Act to Alter the Provisions of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 to compel persons to obey or comply with Legislative Summons, was refused assent by the president.

Another was bill number 29, which sought an Act to Alter the provisions of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 to provide for a State of the Nation and State of the State Address by the President and Governor.

Bill number 22 which sought an Act to Alter the Provisions of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 to Specify the period within which the President or the Governor of State shall present the Appropriation Bill before the National Assembly or House of Assembly.

Bill number 30 sought an Act to Alter the Provisions of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 to include former heads of the National Assembly in the Council of State.

Also, Bill number 14, sought for an Act to Alter the Provisions of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 to move Fingerprints, Identification and Criminal Records from the Exclusive Legislative List to the Concurrent Legislative List

Similarly, Bill 18 sought for an Act to Alter the Provisions of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 to empower the Revenue Mobilization Allocation and Fiscal Commission to Enforce Compliance with Remittance of Accruals into and Disbursement of Revenue from the Federation Account and Streamline the Procedure for Reviewing the Revenue Allocation Formula.

 Sunday Aborisade in Abuja

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