The Senate, on Tuesday, March 1, 2022, rejected bills to alter Part I of the Second Schedule to the 1999 Constitution (as amended) to include Value Added Tax (VAT) on the Exclusive Legislative List; Removal of Transitional Law-making Powers of the Executive; to provide for Diaspora voting; to grant Mayoralty Status for the FCT, and appointment of Minister from the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
BizWatch Nigeria understands that this new development emerged in line with the ongoing Constitution Review.
Aside from the aforementioned bills that were not adopted, the Senate also turned down a bill to provide for more seats for women in the National and State Houses of Assembly.
The Upper Chamber, however, passed a bill to empower the National Assembly and State Assemblies to summon the President and State Governors to answer questions bothering on security or any other issues on which the National and State Houses of Assembly have powers to make laws.
The bill seeks alteration to Section 67 of the Principal Act by inserting after subsection (3), a new subsection (4).
The new subsection (4) provides: “Nothing in this section shall preclude the National Assembly from summoning the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to attend a joint session of the National Assembly to answer questions on national security or any issue whatsoever, over which the National Assembly has powers to make laws.”
The bill further seeks to alter Section 108 of the Principal Act to insert a new subsection (4) to provide: “Nothing in this section shall preclude the House of Assembly of the State from summoning the Governor of the State to attend a sitting of the House of Assembly to answer questions on security or on any issue whatsoever, over which the House of Assembly has powers to make laws.”
