It is a misplacement of facts – House Leader
By Adesuwa Tsan
Members of the House of Representatives, Hon. Nkem Abonta and Leader of the House, Alhassan Ado Doguwa, on Monday engaged in a war of words after Abonta described the Legislature as a toothless bulldog.
The lawmaker said this in Abuja on Monday while delivering a goodwill message at the Legislative Conference 2020 organised by Hallow Mace Communications, in conjunction with the National Orientation Agency, NOA.
Speaking on the theme, “Legislative Investigative Power: Expectations, Challenges and Way Forward,” the lawmaker said the Nigerian parliament has lost its independence to the Executive and as such, can not effectively carry out oversight functions on its ministries, departments and agencies.
He, therefore, urged the Executive to allow the Legislature to do its work without meddling in its affairs.
In his words, “A weak legislature is like a vehicle without an engine; it cannot move fast. Therefore, anything that can be done to strengthen the legislature will grant it a good standing.
“The way forward is for the Executive to stop being meddlesome. It should allow the Legislature do its work without meddling, do its work without party consideration…we are running a master/servant institution and that should not be.
“Weak legislatures engenders weak governance and weak governance brings about issues such as EndSARS.”
He challenged the leadership of the House to explain why “the House has passed one hundred and something motions and none of the resolutions and none has been adhered to by the Executive,” adding that the House had previously sent a resolution to the Executive on the demands later raised by EndSARS movement protesters but no action was taken till it blew up.
”What did we do about it? We are toothless bulldogs,” he emphasised.
But this statement irked the Leader of the House of Representatives, Hon. Alhassan Ado Doguwa, who represented the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila, at the event.
Taking the podium, Doguwa said what Abonta said earlier was a “misrepresentation of facts,” adding that his position that EndSARS protests happened because the lawmakers were not doing their jobs was “too simplistic.”
He said the Legislature could be described as being a lame dog, perhaps, because that is how the public perceives it but said it can in no way be classified as a second class institution.
“For him (Abonta) to say that out of over 100 resolutions passed by the House of Representatives, not even one was implemented is a misplacement of facts,” he countered.
The lawmaker also said that the Green Chamber initiated the agitation against SARS before it was taken up by the youths in a motion that was passed on the floor in plenary which sought the disbandment of the unit, which was supported by its leadership.
“The EndSARS movement, EndSARS initiative started on the floor of the House,” he declared, while also noting that it was resolutions of the Legislature that led to the establishment of agencies such as the North East Development Commission and the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs.
The lawmaker also defended the Executive, saying it had made conscious efforts to foster a good working relationship with the Parliament in order to avert the kind of strained relationship that led to allegations of budget padding in the 8th Assembly.
He concluded by calling for a synergy between the three tiers of government and the involvement of every Nigerian citizen as governance is a joint task.
“There are 3 tiers of government and each one must be seen to be doing their job…the end result of our investigation is compliance and non compliance is a disservice.”