Gbajabiamila, 16 bills and still counting

BY LANRE LASISI

It is now one year that 360 members-elect of the 9th House of Representatives arrived at the National Assembly to join the unique class of Nigerians, tasked by the constitution to serve as federal lawmakers for the country. As lawmakers, their responsibilities include providing quality representation for their constituencies and coming up with quality laws that will contribute to the economic development of the country and address the challenges confronting Nigerians in their daily lives. Ultimately, the existence of the lawmakers is to make laws for the peace and good governance of the country.

While a number of the lawmakers were first termers, others, like Rep. Femi Gbajabiamila, this was a familiar terrain where they were returning to continue their service to their people and their country.

For the Representative of Surulere 1 Federal Constituency of Lagos State, lawmaking has become part and parcel of his life, as he has so far spent a sizeable part of his adult life as a legislator.

Since he first came to the House in 2003, Gbajabiamila has become phenomenal and made it a duty to sponsor Bills, quality Bills for that matter. Those who have been following Speaker Gbajabiamila when he served first as a floor member, then Deputy Minority Whip, to when he became the Minority Leader for eight unbroken years, to his tenure as House Leader for four years know that he has a knack for lawmaking. In fact, with the way he eloquently presents his Bills, it can be argued that he was cut out to be a lawmaker, being a lawyer by profession.

When he was elected to be Speaker a year ago in a keenly contested election, it was time to preside over a House he had served for many years. It was a privilege but one that came with a price.

Perhaps, after becoming Speaker, many Nigerians had thought that they may not see the best of Gbajabiamila leading debates and passionately arguing Bills anymore. This is because being the number one presiding officer in the House, the task before him is enormous. It will leave very little time for him to serve on the floor, presenting Bills and motions, debating and taking part in the practical roles of lawmaking.

Despite that, Speaker Femi Gbajabiamila has worked tirelessly within his tight schedule to ensure that he made out time for what has always been his passion. In just one year, he has presented a total of 16 Bills that are now at different legislative stages.

The Bills include the Electric Power Sector Reform Act (Amendment) Bill, 2019; Physically-challenged (Empowerment) Bill, 2019; Presidential (Transition) Bill, 2019; Economic Stimulus Bill, 2019; Labour Act (Amendment) Bill, 2019; Students Loans (Access to Higher Education) Bill, 2019; Employees (Unpaid Wages Prohibition) Bill, 2019, and Federal Highways Act (Amendment) Bill, 2019.

Others are Legislative Houses (Powers and Privileges) Act (Amendment) Bill, 2019; Emergency Economic Stimulus Bill, 2020; Quarantine Act (Repeal and Reenactment) Bill, 2020; Nigeria Local Content Development and Enforcement Bill, 2020 and four separate Bills on the alteration of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, all of which were introduced in 2019.

Out of the 16 Bills sponsored by the Speaker, six were passed for third reading and forwarded to the Senate for concurrence, another six are at the committees’ stages, while four will soon come up for second reading.

Worthy of note is the fact that since the inception of current democratic dispensation, this is the first time that any Speaker of the House would sponsor and debate this number of Bills in one year.

While the Emergency Economic Stimulus Bill, 2020 was co-sponsored by members of the leadership of the House, the Quarantine Act (Repeal and Reenactment) Bill, 2020, dubbed the Control of Infectious Diseases Bill, 2020, was co-sponsored by the chairmen of the two health committees of the House.

Gbajabiamila, it must be noted, did not sponsor those Bills just for the numbers as an examination of their quality and the positive impact they would have in the lives of Nigerians when they become law will reveal that the Speaker truly have Nigerians at heart.

For example, the Electric Power Sector Reform Act (Amendment) Bill, 2020, which is one of the six Bills awaiting Senate’s action, seeks to prohibit estimated billing, criminalise and provide a penalty for the issuance of estimated bills and failure of the Discos to provide prepaid meters after receiving an application and payment from a customer.

For many years now, Nigerians have been paying bills under the estimated billing system without commensurate power supply. This bill will, therefore, address the complaints and cries of many Nigerians who are agonising over the burden of paying exorbitantly for electricity never consume.

The Students Loan (Access to Higher Education) Bill, 2019, is another Bill that will have more than positive impact on the lives of Nigerian students. It seeks to provide easy access to higher education for Nigerians through interest-free loans from the Nigerian Education Bank. This Bill is also awaiting Senate concurrence.

This all-important Bill will ensure that Nigerian students, irrespective of their backgrounds, would have easy access to loans that would aid their studies.

Owing to his love for the physically-challenged Nigerians and the need to have them well protected and covered, Gbajabiamila came up with the Physically-challenged (Empowerment) Bill. The main thrust of this Bill is to ensure that 20 per cent of all jobs available in Federal Government Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) and companies are reserved for the physically-challenged persons in Nigeria.

In response to the Covid-19 pandemic, the Speaker also initiated the Emergency Economic Stimulus Bill, 2020 with the support of his colleagues in the House leadership. The Bill seeks to provide for tax relief, suspension of import duty on selected medical goods and deferral of residential mortgage obligations.

The Bill also provides measures to protect jobs and relieve the financial pressure on citizens in response to the pandemic and the attendant economic upheaval been experienced. It is also already in the Senate for concurrence.

All the other Bills that the Speaker painstakingly took his time to sponsor would have a tremendous impact on good governance in Nigeria by the time they become law.

It is this kind of robust legislation that Gbajabiamila would continue to sponsor in his remaining years in office.

Lasisi is the Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to the Speaker, House of Representatives.