Benjamin Kalu, the spokesperson of the House of Representatives has joined the race to the speakership of the Green Chamber of the National Assembly.
Kalu who represents Bende Federal Constituency of Abia State made his intention known while addressing journalists in Abuja where he promised to ensure parliamentary independence if elected as speaker.
He said Nigerians need a speaker that has the capacity to achieve cohesion, national unity, inclusiveness that will bring everybody together for the purpose of achieving prosperity for the nation.
The lawmaker assured that he has the capacity and competence to lead the Green Chamber having served meritoriously as the Spokesman of the 9th Assembly and other positions.
Kalu said: “Nigerians are looking for a Speaker that will increase what I call parliamentary sovereignty where the motions, the resolutions and independence of the arm of government would be showcased better than 9th assembly had struggled because 9th assembly has maintained its independence, then we need somebody that will take the bath and sustain that independence.
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“Many people say rubber stamp but we have always consciously monitored the borderline in the way we sustain this racer free relationship with the executive., understanding the doctrine of separation of power, knowing the borderline between what is expected by the mandate of our arm of government constitutionally speaking and where the mandate of the executive starts.
“So, Nigerians are looking for parliamentary sovereignty, Nigerians are looking for a speaker that will increase institutional trust. You and I will agree that the coming of the legislature appears like a strange arm of government when Nigerians have been used to military rule – the executive and the judiciary.
“The issue becomes who is that man that will increase the credibility, the capacity, the knowledge base legislative intervention that would gladden the hearts of Nigerians to begin to understand that really this is the fulcrum of our democracy.
“Institutional trust is key in the minds of Nigerians and I’m a Nigerian as well, so I know what all of us are looking for. Who is coming to sustain what has been done by these builders who have started the building and laid bricks and who would take it up from there?”
The lawmaker turned lawmaker promised to accord priority to enactment of laws bordering on education, economy, economic growth, job creation, poverty reduction, insecurity and healthcare and environmental sustainability, if elected as the next Speaker of the 10th Assembly.
He said: “It is a gender sensitive speaker that will reopen that space and begin to see reasons why they did not pass through before the president and then begin to give it the sense of belonging.
“So, prioritising education is what is in the mind of nigerians. Laws around education, laws around the economy, economic growth, job creation, poverty reduction, insecurity and healthcare and environmental sustainability.
“These are some of the things that the speaker that is coming on board should be equipped to be able to deliver and I know Benjamin Okezie Kalu has been equipped to represent 369 members as the image maker of the house of representatives for four years and was no mean feat and we have discharge our responsibility creditably well, making sure that the image of the National Assembly where we met it was not lower than where we are leaving it, to climb to the next pedestal.
“We have tried our best to ensure that both at the constituency level, both at membership level, both the relationship between members and relations between arms of government and the vertical relationship with the executive, we have sustained that relationship and kept our image through public engagement we have always yearning listening to the of Nigerians as it pertains to transparency to be able to open up the space so that we can reduce the opaqueness in the activities of the of the House of Representatives.”
