By Haruna Salami
As the 9th National Assembly celebrates second anniversary of it’s inauguration, the Senate President, Ahmad Lawan has repeated their resolve to pass some bills that will bring rapid socio-economic development of the country.
Some of such bills include the Electoral Act Amendment Bill, and the Constitution Amendment Bill and Petroleum Industry Bill, PIB.
Lawan disclosed this while speaking at a media briefing to mark second anniversary of the 9th senate on Friday sdding that it is a mark of excellent effort that the ninth senate is soon ready to pass the PIB after twenty years of failed attempts.
“We have a goal to deliberate on the report of the Committee on the Amendment of the 1999 Constitution in July before we proceed on our yearly recess, as well”, Lawan said.
He disclosed that 742 bills were introduced into the ninth senate in the last two years, out of which 58 have been passed, while 355 bills have sailed through first reading.
Lawan added that 175 bills have also gone through second reading and are before relevant committees for further legislative actions.
In addition, he said the House of Representatives has referred 11 bills for concurrence and have all been passed, saying “these are outstanding records considering emergencies, like the Covid-19 pandemic that we confronted”. According to him “the determination of the Senate to pass the PIB is additionally in line with our resolve to be a result-oriented parliament, where our activities are hallmarked by quality, timeliness, and actions that are focused on the people”.
“The 2023 general elections will be the seventh in our electoral cycle since the dawn of democracy. The onus is now on us to consolidate it, partly through the bill, given the important innovations embedded in it. We will finish work on it before our annual recess”.
