… Vows to block revenue leakages
Speaker of the House of Representatives Rep. Yakubu Dogara, has disclosed
that the House will commence debate on the 8th Assembly Legislative Agenda
next week.
A statement issued by his spokesman Hassan Turaki, on Thursday said the
Speaker made this known when he received the draft 8th Assembly
Legislative Agenda from the Committee of Members and experts he
commissioned few days ago.
“As early as next week we will debate the legislative agenda and adopt the
final version,” he said.
Dogara informed the panel that the 8th House under his leadership “will do
everything possible to implement the legislative agenda even if it means
setting up a substantive committee. This will define the character of the
8th Assembly.”
The Speaker also lamented a situation whereby revenue generating agencies
of the Federal government hide under laws establishing them to withhold
monies they generate.
He said even though some laws have allowed the Ministries, Department and
Agencies (MDAs) to retain certain percentage of the revenue they generate,
there is the need to review those laws in order to plug the leakages
because most of them do under declare their earnings.
Dogara further advocated for prudent management of the nation’s foreign
reserve in such a manner that interest accrued are declared by the foreign
fund managers which may be running into hundreds of millions of dollars.
Another key area that came up for discussion was the issue of donor
funding with some committee members disclosing that between 10 to 17
percent of some ministries’ budgets are funded through foreign aids.
Some members of the committee also lamented that in most cases, the funds
are neither reflected in the annual Appropriation Bill, nor are they
declared by the affected ministries and departments.
The draft legislative agenda is proposing for the introduction of
sectorial debate, the conduct of legislative needs assessment of the House
of Representatives by experts and restructuring of the House standing
committees among others.
Dogara had on Tuesday inaugurated the 22-man committee under the
chairmanship of C. J. Osman with Hon. C.I.D Maduabum, Aisha Dukku,
Abdulsamad Dasuki, Shehu Garba Sarkin Noma, Zakari Mohammed, O.K. Chinda,
Toby Okechukwu, Princess Adedoyin, Ahmed Yerima and Ibrahim Baba as
members.
Others include Hon Adeyinka Ajayi, Ahman Pategi, Adetunji Ajabge, Clement
Nwankwo, Mansur Jarkasa, Mrs. Omotayo Brimmo, Enoch Jarumi, Mrs. Cordelia
Akunwafor, Professor J. O. Amupitan SAN, and Oscar Okoro.
The House which has been on two weeks recess is billed to resume next week.