STRENGHING LEGISLATIVE PRACTICE IN NIGERIA

…APRC Shows The  Way In Imo State

EDEDET NYONG


Of the three arms of government, the legislature is often touted as the bastion of democracy. Anytime the military strikes, as they often do on the African continent, the legislature is summarily suspended, while the other two arms, the executive and the judiciary continue to function. In Nigeria, where military incursions have truncated democracy more than once, the legislature is also vulnerable. Thus, upon the return to democratic rule in 1999, the legislative arm was the most inexperienced and ill-equipped arm of our fledgling democracy.

Ahead of the inauguration of another round of State Assemblies in the country, the African Parliamentary Resource Center(APRC), an Abuja, Nigeria based non governmental organization devoted to building effective leadership and good governance is beaming it’s focus on the state assemblies inorder to help equip them to properly understand their roles and responsibilities in a democracy. From Delta State to Gombe state. Jigawa to Osun states, APRC team is on the road organizing Pre-Inauguration Seminars for the soon to be lawmakers and in the process exposing them to what is expected of them in the core legislative thematic areas of lawmaking, oversight functions and constituents engagement.

Fresh from its last outing, the APRC team led by its Executive Director, Mr. John Mutu berthed the beautiful city of Uyo, Akwa Ibom State to organize yet another Pre- Inauguration Seminar, this time for the soon to be inaugurated members of the Imo State House of Assembly at the serene bowels of the Ibom Icon Hotels and Golf Resort.

Declaring the seminar open, the Imo State Governor, Sen. Hope Uzodinma praised the efforts of the APRC team for putting together the seminar, which he described as ‘impactful’ and urged the Assembly Members- elect to pay utmost attention to the well laid out topics for presentation. He said,  ‘having gone through the topics and quality of presenters lined up, I have no doubt that this seminar will be impactful’. He frowned at executive – legislature squabbles, positing that such represents an anathema for good governance and  welcomed the ‘members- elect onboard an Imo State that is already delivering dividends of democracy for Imolites’

Speaking at the event, the speaker of the outgoing Imo State House of Assembly, Hon. Emeka Nduka thanked the state governor for putting together the seminar for the members-elect. He advised them to take the presentations seriously as it would help them become good legislators. The clerk of the Assembly, Mrs Chinelo Emeghara also thanked the governor for the seminar and for approving a large number of staff delegates to attend the event. While the team lead of APRC, Mr John Mutu in his keynote address highlighted the areas of executive- legislature relationship that should be promoted and others that shouldn’t be. He revealed the carefully selected team of professionals who will be on hand to share their experiences with the members-elect and summed that ‘it promises to be three days of intensive learning and relearning’

With the speeches done with, the stage was set for the presentations on a wide array of legislative thematic areas. Barr. Innocent Megbiri, a director in the National Assembly and Clerk, Senate committee on Appropriation was first to hit the floor. He spoke on the topic, ‘Appropriation Bill and Budgeting, the fulcrum of good governance.’ The highly experienced federal civil servant took the members-elect on how to dissect the Appropriation Bill, subtract and add projects of interest to their constituents without altering the total sum, track approvals and releases of budgeted funds, perform oversights on projects and lots more. He advised the would be speaker of the House to ensure that membership into the Appropriation committee is on merit as it could make or mar democracy deliverables for Imo people.

Next to speak was another director in the National Assembly and Clerk, House of Representatives committee on judiciary, Barr. Ibrahim Usman, PhD on the topic, ‘Legislative Powers and their Limitations.’  He dwelt on powers of the legislature to oversight the implementation of projects, summon erring public officials to the House to explain their actions or inactions, receive petitions from the public, screen nominees from the executive and lots more. The very intellectual and interactive session featured questions from the participants and appropriate answers from the legal policy expert.

On the second day of the Pre-Inauguration Seminar, two individuals with over 70 years of combined legislative working experience had the floor. Mr Abdullahi Adamu, a former Deputy Clerk, Legislative Matters in the National Assembly, Senate and Dr. Shaibu Danwanka, a former Director, National Institute of Legislative and Democratic studies ( NILDS) National Assembly, Abuja were the resource persons. Both poured their opulent and copious experiences on the Imo lawmakers in waiting, leaving them awestruck with the enormity of the weight of expectations hanging on their shoulders. For Mr. Adamu whose topic was Longevity of Lawmakers and The Benefits therein: The United States of America Example, the bane of the country’s legislature is the frequent turnover of legislators. ‘In the United States of America where we copied our brand of democracy from, we have senators and congressmen who’ve spent 40+ years in Capitol Hill, they’ve learnt the craft and can deliver massively to their constituents.’ Whereas, here, every four years, a new assembly man comes along,’ he said. This situation does not help in capacity building and effective legislative engagement,’ the former Deputy Clerk, Senate  submitted. While in Dr Danwanka’s topic, Capacity Building and Effective Legislative Delivery, lawmakers need to be constantly trained and retrained to understand their strategic role in a democracy. Trust, the knowledge seeking lawmakers in waiting, they fired salvos upon salvos on the resource persons who in turn responded admirably. Thereafter, the House of Assembly members elect went into a breakout session where the presentations were further dissected.

On the third and final day of the seminar, two speakers with contrasting ages, the ageless diplomat, Amb. Jerry Ugokwe, a former staff of the United States Congress and the young and effervescent Barr. Hari Bedari, a policy affairs expert took the participants further into the workings of the legislature. Amb. Ugokwe who is also a former Nigerian ambassador to Austria and OPEC gave them useful insights into the day to day work schedule of a legislator, replying sumptuously on his over two decades experience in the US Congress, with Barr. Bedari offering the same, albeit using his experience working with the various committees in the Nigerian senate.

At the twilight of the very illuminating seminar, the lawmakers took turns to share their experiences, meet minds and project into the four years of legislative engagement that lies ahead. One of them, Mr. Chike Olemgbe  described the session as a perfect prelude to their inauguration, heaping praises on the initiators as well as executors of the three day event. To Mr. Kanoyo Onyemaechi,  the serene ambience of the Ibom Icon Hotels offered them the ‘right atmosphere to absorb the well thought out papers.’ He promised to make use of all he had been taught in the discharge of his responsibilities as a lawmaker in the next four years.

It was a session like no other for the would be members of the Imo State House of Assembly when a top notch not for profit organization, the African Parliamentary Resource Center (APRC) organized a three day  pre- inauguration seminar for them. From the quality and quantum of presentations and resource persons, the members elect have been sufficiently drilled ahead of their June 10, 2023 inauguration in the Imo State House of Assembly complex, Owerri.

We hope and pray the members-elect put to good use what they’ve learnt even as we call on other well meaning organizations,  government MDAs, State Houses of Assembly, corporate bodies, blue chips and the others to reach out to the hottest not for profit organization in town for the training and retraining of their board members , industry players, management and other staff members, among others.

For the right training and seminars for your organization, APRC is the best bet.

To God be the Glory


This publication was originally published in our June, 2023 edition