A group in the House of Representatives pushing for a return to the parliamentary system is making overture to the leadership of the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF), in order to achieve their objective.
Rep. Kingsley Chinda, the minority leader of the House and leader of the group, disclosed this after a meeting with the ACF on Thursday in Abuja.
Chinda said that the 60 lawmakers pushing for the return to parliamentary system needed the supports of regions and other important bodies for the smooth passage of the proposed legislation.
He underscored the need for a paradigm shift from the current presidential system of government to a parliamentary system.
“We are here in continuation of our efforts to get Nigerians to understand the gains behind the bills seeking to return to parliamentary system we have proposed on the floor of the House.
“This bill, we expect, would take us out of the present very laborious United States’ type of presidential system.
“What we are looking for is a constitutional review to reduce the current baggage associated with the presidential system of government,’’ Chinda said.
He said that the parliamentary system would make office holders more accountable.
“We came to meet the ACF to talk to them about this and to get their buy-in, just like we are also moving around to meet other people.
“We are also drawing from their wealth of knowledge because a lot of questions are being asked, a lot of suggestions are being made, and we are enriching our own knowledge, he said.
On his part, Chairman of the ACF Board of Trustees, Alh. Bashir Dalhatu, expressed delight over the initiative, assuring that the delegation of ACF was ready to provide necessary supports.
“We have agreed that at the end, we are going to constitute a committee that would be working with the lawmakers to look at the draft bill they prepared and to also make other suggestions and inputs.
He expressed the hope that at the end, the change would be in the best interest of all Nigerians.
“There is a popular opinion that the presidential system of government is very expensive and not working very well for us presently, hence the need to change style,’’ he said.
He said it was time for the people and the government to start looking for better alternatives.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that both parties, unanimously resolved to set up a committee to review the proposed legislation at the end of their meeting.(NAN)
By Femi Ogunshola
