The House of Representatives on Wednesday stepped down a bill for an act to establish the Nigeria Diaspora Intervention Trust Fund and for related matters.
The action followed members’ debate against the general principles of the bill sponsored by Kabiru Alhassan Rurum from Kano and Bamidele Salam from Osun State at plenary.
Salam, one of the sponsors in a lead debate, said the bill seeks to provide a framework that will substantially protect the investment of Nigerians in the diaspora whose remittances to this economy on a yearly basis runs into billions of dollars. He said the country got $3.4 billion from remittances by Nigerians in the diaspora in the first quarter of the year, arguing that the enactment of the legislation would spur them to do more for national development.
“This trust fund is in principle in existence through the initiative of the Nigerian in Diaspora Commission but it is not governed by an act of parliament and we believe very strongly that for the trust fund to be protected and for it to have the desired effect, in terms of providing a framework to protect the hard earned resources of our fellow citizens who send in their monies from the various parts of the world into this country.
“Provide a framework that can provide them technical support in terms of where they can invest their money and ensure that they are protected from the unwholesome activities of some Nigerians locally, who take advantage of the fact that Nigerians in diaspora are not around and they may not have the way of putting their eyes on their investments to dupe them of their hard earned resources.
“We decided to have a framework which put together a body of honest Nigerians, to offer this support to Nigerians in diaspora; number one: it will encourage them to remit more of their money to the Nigerian economy and two, it will also provide this economy with the needed benefit of having the best value for the money that is being remitted.”
But, Gboluga Ikengboju from Ondo State opposed the bill, saying what was needed to protect Nigerians in the diaspora was not an establishment of a trust fund but strong laws and institutions.
“Funds don’t give our people in the diaspora that protection. What we need to protect their interest, their investment in Nigeria is strong and formidable laws and institutions that will protect their interest.
“We agree that most of our people in the diaspora could fall victim to some of the manipulative tendencies of fraudulent people in Nigeria. So, the question to ask Mr. Speaker is that, is this trust fund going to guarantee the security and interest of Nigerians in diaspora? My answer, if we interrogate the need to establish this trust fund, is no,” he said.
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In his intervention, Toby Okechukwu, deputy minority leader of the House asked the sponsor of the bill to tell the House the ‘economics’ of the proposed legislation to enable lawmakers make informed decisions.
In his ruling, after the sponsor sought the leave of the House for it to be stepped down for further consultations, Ahmed Wase, deputy speaker of the House, said lawmakers would have earlier back out on the bill and follow the direction of the debate by members.
“This is what you would have done ab initio, when you hear colleagues moving to a particular direction, it is only wise to move to the direction or take the wisdom behind their own solutions. So, the second reading of the bill is stepped down by the House,” Wase ruled.
Meanwhile, the House stepped down the second reading of a bill for an act to amend Same Sex Marriage (Prohibition) Act, 2013 to prohibit cross- dressing; and for related matters.
Muda Lawal Umar, who sponsored the bill, said same sex marriage was alien and barbaric to Nigerians, and the amendment seeks to prohibit the new trend of cross-dressing – wearing of clothes of opposite sexes by individuals.
