37 new bills ready for Reps consideration

In readiness for the resumption of plenary on July 23, about 37 new bills have been gazetted by the House of Representatives for consideration, amidst the crisis rocking the National Assembly.

Analysts say if this momentum is maintained, this Eighth Session could surpass the Aminu Tambuwal tenure during which about 100 bills were passed.

Of the bills transmitted by the Seventh Session to the former president, Goodluck Jonathan, for assent, only 35 were signed into law during his six-year tenure, coming lower than the 110 bills assented to by President Olusegun Obasanjo during his eight-year tenure.

Albert Sam-Tsokwa, ex-chairman, House Committee on Rules and Business, said 767 bills that were introduced on the floor of the House passed through first reading. Of these were 70 bills introduced by the executive, while 679 bills were private bills.

The new bills which are to be penned on the Order Paper of the House for the 8th Assembly are being sponsored by five lawmakers. They are the Speaker Yakubu Dogara (APC-Bauchi), Ossai Ossai (PDP-Delta), Uzoma Nkem-Abonta (PDP-Abia), Ajibola Famurewa (APC- and Gideon Gwani.

The four bills gazetted and sponsored by Yakubu Dogara, Speaker of the House of Representatives are Federal Competition Commission (Establishment) bill, 2015; Data Protection bill, 2015; Public Interest Disclosure bill, 2015 and Subsidiary Legislation (Regulation) bill, 2015.

Ossai Ossai (PDP-Delta) is sponsoring six bills, namely: Federal Capital Territory District Court (Amendment) bill, 2015; Pension Rights of Judges (Amendment) bill, 2015; Companies and Allied Matters (Amendment) bill, 2015; National Industrial Court (Amendment) bill, 2015 and two others on the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (Alteration) 2015.

Five out of the bills by Gideon Gwani are: National Judicial Institute (Amendment) bill, 2015; Chattered Institute of Management Information Technology of Nigeria bill, 2015; Federal Roads Authority bill, 2015; Nigerian Railway Authority bill, 2015 and Nigerian Postal Commission bill, 2015.

Others are Environmental Health bill, 2015; Environmental Health Officers (Registration, etc.) Act 2002, (Amendment) bill, 2015; Nigeria Industrial Revolution Plan bill, 2015; Chartered Institute of Human Capital Development of Nigeria bill, 2015 and Nigerian Agency for Foreign Assistance bill, 2015.

Ajibola Famurewa is sponsoring the Nigeria Dental Nurses and Dental Surgery Technicians bill, 2015.

Also enlisted on the gazette bills are 16 critical bills by Uzoma Nkem-Abonta.

They include Free Trade Zones bill, 2015; International Trade Commission bill, 2015; Telecommunication Facilities (lawful interception of information) bill, 2015; Investment and Securities (Amendment) bill, 2015; Gender Equal Opportunities bill, 2015; Emergency Communication bill, 2015; Commodity Exchange bill, 2015 and Federal Capital Territory Area Councils (Administrative and Political Structure) bill, 2015.

Others are Police Act (Amendment) bill, 2015; Satellite Towns Development Agency bill, 2015; Statutory Instrument (Legislative scrutiny) bill, 2015; National Programme on Immunisation (Repeal) bill, 2015; National Primary Health Care Development Agency (Amendment) bill; Petroleum Refineries Incentives, Regulation and Miscellaneous Provision) bill, 2015; Environmental Managers Registration Council of Nigeria bill, 2015 and Chartered Institute of Project Management of Nigeria bill, 2015.

KEHINDE AKINTOLA