Daily Independent (Lagos)
Adetutu Folasade-Koyi
18 November 2008
Long before Senators headed to Kano, there was a jostle among the 19 northern states for the hosting of the fourth annual retreat.
While the jostling was going on, perhaps, in the spirit of Government of National Unity (GNU), they decided to hold the event in a state controlled by the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP).
Hitherto, the past three retreats had been held in states controlled by the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
The serious contenders were Borno and Kano states. But while Maiduguri was seriously considered because the governor, Ali Modu Sheriff, was a former colleague, senators chose the nearby ancient city of Kano for reasons not clearly defined yet.
However, uncorroborated hints indicate that the choice of Kano, might not be unconnected with the touted desire and indeed pressure by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to get the state Governor, Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau, and other ANPP governors as well to into its fold.
And so, to Kano senators headed on November 10, for a retreat largely aimed at improving legislative capacity and engendering sustainable development in Nigeria.
While President Umaru Yar'Adua was billed to open the event, Managing Director of Oceanic Bank Plc, Mrs. Cecilia Ibru, and Presidential candidate of African Democratic Party (ADC) and Director General, Lagos Business School, Prof. Pat were scheduled to present papers with special emphasis on the global financial crisis and its impact on the Nigerian economy.
Chairman of the Retreat Planning Committee, Deputy Minority Whip, Kabiru Gaya, former Governor of Kano State, had set the tune for the exercise with the theme Legislature and Sustainable Development in Nigeria. He noted that the break from legislative duties would provide an opportunity for the senators to take stock of achievements made so far, and particularly afford them the previlege of assessing the impact of the environmental problem of desertification in the northern states.
To enable them familiarise themselves with the problems, they were expected to tour core states in the North-West geo-political zone, including Sokoto, Jigawa and Kaduna states in three separate groups.
Papers would be presented on such topics as: Desertification, Climate Change and the Challenge of Poverty,' by Prof. E.U. Essiet of the Bayero University, Kano; Ensuring Food Security in Nigeria: Boosting the Capacity for Irrigated Farming,' by Prof. Ango Abdullahi, Special Adviser on Food Security to former President Olusegun Obasanjo. Former colleagues incorporated as resource persons included former Appropriation and Finance Committee Chairman in the fifth Senate, Senator John Azuta Mbata.
He was invited to present paper on: The Legislature and the Budget process in Nigeria: Appraisal of Roles and Outcomes; while An Appraisal of the Oversight Function of the National Assembly, would be taken by the former House of Representatives Speaker, Umar Ghali Na'Abba, Senators Udoma Udo Udoma and Jonathan Zwingina.
Other topics included Constitutional Powers of the Legislature and the Executive-Legislature Inter-relationships; Performance- based Budgeting and Budgeting to Bridge the Infrastructure Gap; and Building Mega Cities through Infrastructural Development.
Setting the ball rolling, Yar'Adua urged the Senate to speed up electoral reforms by amending relevant laws, against the backdrop of pending litigations over the 2007 elections.
The President expressed concern that while the Electoral Act, which guides elections in the country, specified the timeframe to such file petitions in court, it was silent on for litigations .
Represented by his deputy, Goodluck Jonathan, the President, who spoke on the theme: The Legislature and Sustainable Development in Nigeria, Yar'Adua urged the lawmakers to consider constitutional solutions to national problems in a proposed amendment of the 1999 Constitution.
"This Senate Retreat is, therefore, timely especially bearing in mind the need to urgently reform our electoral system as the foundation of democracy and good governance. I am not aware of any other country, for example, where litigations arising from elections drag on for years after presumed winners have been sworn in. The distractions that these cause for smooth governance and delivery of the dividends of democracy are better imagined. While the Electoral Law puts a firm ceiling on the period within which, electoral petitions must be filed, the same law does not put a similar ceiling on when such cases must be concluded.
"It is reasonable to expect that such litigations should be concluded before elected officials are inaugurated. I, therefore, invite this distinguished Senate to, as a matter of priority and urgency, take critical look at the relevant laws in order to amend them accordingly," he said.
The President, apparently alluding to the perceived schism between the Presidency and NASS over the 2008 budget, canvassed a mutual, smooth constitutional relationship between the Executive and the National Assembly, adding that constant consultations between the two arms of government would reduce tension in the polity.
His words: "This well thought-out theme is apt because it implies many relevant issues such as:
. a critical re-examination of the constitutional roles and responsibilities of the Legislature in national development;
. a critical re-definition of legislative functions and responsibilities in national development - from the budgetary process to project implementation and monitoring;
. a fundamental need for the Executive and the Legislature to jointly whittle down to the barest minimum, areas of disagreement between them, in order to avoid waste of invaluable time and thus smoothen budget implementation process in particular and good governance in general.
"Executive relations call for the continuation of consultation amongst us. The two arms can, through consultations, resolve areas of tension and stress in matters such as budgeting so that, proposals from the Executive that do not meet the approval of the Legislature may not be unilaterally expunged without consultation with the Executive that proposed such.
"In this way, we can meet our goals and achieve our vision faster. The goals we have set for ourselves as a nation, in terms of the Seven-point Agenda and Vision 2020, are enormous tasks indeed. We are, therefore, duty-bound to remove all technical and institutional impediments to national development."
Senate President, David Mark, the convener, also explained the reason for moving the event out of Abuja, reiterating that the upper legislative chamber moved it to Kano so as to better understand environmental problems confronting the country. "Whereas in the South South, we had the opportunity of visiting the creeks to avail ourselves of the natural setting of the Niger Delta, and then environmental problems that are faced by the people of that geo-political zone, this time around senators will be exposed to the deforested and desert parts of the North; the need to maximise irrigation, the weather and ecological problems and the various challenges that abound and beg for appropriate legislative and budgetary attention."
In response to the president's call for a mutual relationship between the two arms of government, Mark assured that his constituency would not fail on its part. "This synergy between the Executive and the Legislature is a most welcome development in our checkered political history, particularly at this point in time when all hands are expected to be on deck to see to the actualisation of the Seven-point agenda as well as the Vision 2020 of the present administration," Mark said.
Response To World Financial Crisis
Although the private banking sector did not make it to the retreat, government seized the opportunity to brief the Senate about its plans for 2009.
Conscious of the global financial crisis and the need to be a step ahead of any development in the nation's financial sector vis-a-vis its role as the eyes and ears of the people, Director-General of the Budget Office, Bright Okogu, informed the senators on the Executive's financial and economic plans for next year.
Speaking on Performance-based Budgeting and Budgeting to Bridge the Infrastructure Gap, Okogu disclosed that out of the 2009 appropriation proposals, with 91 per cent allocated to capital budget, 46 per cent would be spent on investments on critical infrastructural development.
He enumerated government's priorities areas in the proposed budget to include:
.Power (11.9 per cent) with focused investments of N365 billion in various power generation and transmission projects across the country;
.Petroleum resources (4 per cent) with attendant investments of about N193 billion in various gas pipeline projects to support the power initiative;
.Works (16.2 per cent) with investments of about N105 billion on various highways, rehabilitation/ construction, and construction of the second Niger Bridge at Onitsha
.Transport (4.6 per cent) with investments of N21 billion in rail lines, modernisation of locomotives, rehabilitation of tracks, cranes and other railway equipment.
The remaining 9.3 per cent is expected to take care of investments in other key infrastructure.
He continued: "To support the power initiative, government has increased investment in petroleum resources' gas projects. Concerning petroleum resources, investment in gas pipeline projects include: National domestic gas projects; Trans Sahara gas pipeline project; Calabar-Umahia-Ajaokuta gas pipeline; Ajaokuta-Abuja-Kano gas pipeline and; Gas supply pipeline to PHCN Delta IV.
Another Phase Of Strategic Investments In Works he said special provisions had also been made for access roads to the six NNPC refineries and ports, highways rehabilitation and construction, highways planning and designs, construction of the second Niger Bridge at Onitsha using the Public Private Participation (PPP) initiative.
Presidential road initiative on road projects, according to would see to extensive work on Abuja/Abaji/Lokoja road.
"Other road projects in all the six geopolitical zones on next year's budget include Lafia/Akwanga, Gombe-Numan-Yola, Hadejia-Nguru, Onitsha-Enugu, Yenegwe-Kolo, Akungba-Ikare-Omuo-Kabba, etc."
The third phase of the strategic investments being planned by the Federal Government for next year is the completion of the Ajaokuta-Warri Line to Delta Steel Jetty.
Yet investments in the transport sector would also see to the modernisation of locomotives, coaches and wagons, rehabilitation works on tracks, stations, bridges, signals and culverts, procurement of tools, cranes and other railway equipment."
He added that greater emphasis is being laid on clearly defined and measurable deliverables expected from the MDAs (Ministries, Departments and Agencies), key of which include a directive given to NNPC to deliver 1.2 billion sct of gas to guarantee minimum of 6,000 megawatts of power in 2009; maintenance and repair of 40, 700 kilometres of federal roads next year; completion of 2, 821 metre length of bridges and engineering designs, construction and rehabilitation of 1, 114 kilometres of roads in 2009.
Completion and modernisation of seven specialist teaching hospitals and three teaching hospitals is also on the list of government's priority for 2009.
Legislative-Executive Relationship
Anyim, who took over from there, reminded his ex-colleagues to at all times be on the side of the people while at the same time maintaining a healthy relationship, through observance of separation of powers.
The former Senate President, who had a testy time with former President, Olusegun Obasanjo, believed to have sealed his chances of returning to the senate, hammered on the fact that dichotomy between the Executive and the Legislative arms of government is the greatest threat to the nation's democracy.
He called for resolution of such dichotomy to ensure good governance, which would deliver democracy dividends to the electorate.
"Perhaps, the most dangerous threat to our fledgling democracy today is the dichotomy between the Legislative and the Executive arms of government.
"This mutual suspicion presents itself from various dimensions. One of such dimensions is the dichotomy between the federal legislatures and their state chief executives, and on the other hand, between the National Assembly and the President or the state Assembly and their governors. I am inclined to think that resolving, by whatever means, this dangerous dichotomy between the Legislative and the Executive arm is the only way to save our young democracy, and I charge the Legislature as the symbol of democracy to devote all they can lead to the crusade for a better understanding among the two arms.
"In doing this, the principle must be that power belongs to the people, and that the rule of law is the only guarantee to justice and better society for all," Anyim stated.
Former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Umar Na'abba, in his own paper: An Appraisal of the Oversight Functions, recounted the harrowing experience of the lower House in getting former President Olusegun Obasanjo accept its constitutional responsibilities.
Na'abba recounted to his former colleagues the turbulence, which characterised his tenure over members' insistence to assert their rights under a president who had very little respect for the institution.
"For the purpose of our discussion, I would like to define oversight as the process whereby legislatures control the behaviour of the executive branch. This type of oversight is called legislative oversight. Legislatures all over the world are not intended to be static institutions. They have repeatedly changed to meet new conditions, pressures, expectations and demands in a rapidly changing world.
"To carry out their functions, the various legislatures had developed and continue to develop their own rules and processes, while they have always had to deal with the co-equal Executive and judicial branches of government. The Legislature has many instruments through which to control the behaviour of the executive branch, and for our purpose, the constitutional provision that 'no money shall be withdrawn from the Consolidated Revenue Fund or any other public fund of the federation, except in the manner prescribed by the National Assembly,' often provides it with the most direct route from legislative will to executive action.
"How both Houses of the National Assembly prescribe the manner in which federal spending is executed remains the responsibility of the appropriation committees. Thus, the appropriation committees exist ultimately, to allow members of the House and Senate to control federal spending," he said.
Identifying Fiscal and Policy Control as the two ways of checking federal spending, Na'Abba said while fiscal control is about keeping spending totals within acceptable aggregate limits, policy control is about achieving more particular substantive goals, such as constituency projects among others.
His words: "Wise legislators often use this form of control to influence governmental policy. However, the appropriation process has never always been smooth sailing. Various times in the life of the National Assembly, conflicts characterise the appropriation process from beginning to end. In fact, these conflicts extend beyond the passage of the acts into law. These conflicts were more prevalent between 1999 to 2003. The reasons are not farfetched.
"The National Assembly of those years and the then President, Gen. Obasanjo, had important philosophical differences. Fundamental among those differences was the issue of the power of the National Assembly over appropriation and by extension, oversight.
"While the Constitution explicitly stated that all funds belonging to the federation cannot be spent except in the manner prescribed by the National Assembly, President Obasanjo had his own ideas.
"He never believed that beyond rubber-stamping his budget, the National Assembly has any role in the appropriation process. Thus, the appropriation processes of 1999 and 2000, in particular, were characterised by so much rancour and conflict to the extent that the supplementary appropriation bill submitted to the National Assembly in September 1999 could only be passed in February 2000, while the year 2000 budget, submitted to the National Assembly in November 1999, was only passed in June 2000."
To resolve the imbroglio, Na'Abba said it took the intervention of PDP leadership, which raised a team to confer with the PDP-dominated National Assembly and make them see reason why they should not rock the boat.
"A PDP caucus committee headed by Dr. Alex Ekwueme had to come and pacify the PDP caucus of the National Assembly for that budget to be passed. In fact, most of the problems characterising the relationship between the Executive branch and the Legislative branch at the state and the federal levels stem out of the appropriation process. The fall-out often results in the impeachment of Speaker after Speaker, particularly at state level. Not that attempts are not also tried at the federal level. Members of the Legislature who oppose the Executive of the state usually end up being denied the opportunity to re-contest election under the party, because the Executives have pocketed the parties. And this happened if attempts by the governors to cause the recall of such members prove unsuccessful," he stated.
The former Speaker not only underscored the importance, of such a hindrance, against oversights but called on his audience to take up the issue very seriously, with a view to examining it in all its ramifications, if only to have further insights on what dangers absence of it or too much of it portend to the nation's nascent democracy.
"What remains sacred, however, is that it must exist. There can be no frictionless democracy. In fact, this friction can be functional, for in its inevitability, arising from the distribution of governmental powers, the people are saved from dictatorship.
"It is also highly instructive to note that as far as the Nigerian situation is concerned, oversight over the Executive arm has been a teething problem for reasons that have to do with the readiness of the legislatures and also the overall understanding of the environment of what democracy is all about, particularly the issue. If our democracy is to survive, we must reach a consensus on oversight. Checks and balances that are the hallmark of the system of separation of powers are being imperiled on a daily basis. Unknown to a lot of people, all the abuses in the system including the lack of internal democracy in our parties are products of the resistance to checks and balances at all levels," he added.
Desertification: Another Major Issue
Prof. E U. Essiet, Department of Agronomy and Soil Science, Bayero University, Kano, who spoke on Challenges of Desertification and Poverty, defined desertification in relation to the North.
While agreeing that it could be reversed, he tried to put the phenomenon, especially some misunderstanding on it in proper perspective. His words: "Desertification is the destruction of the biological potential of the land leading to the spatial extension of the desert-like conditions of soil and vegetation into areas outside the climatic desert. It is distinguished from desert encroachment, which is the natural advance of the desert.
"There are still many things that are not known about the degradation of productive lands and the expansion of deserts. There is no common ground among scientists as to the specific causes, extent or degree of desertification. Contrary to popular belief, desertification is a gradual and complex process of deterioration, which may often be reversed."
He expressed his confidence on the ability of the National Assembly to make appropriate laws that could redeem the situation in the areas clearly hit by the ecological menace. "I would want to believe that the present crop of assemblymen and women generally have the political will which could be brought to bear an appropriate legislation and resource allocation aimed at desertification control to alleviate poverty. The Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria is uniquely positioned to provide the leadership in this national assignment. We owe our people this sacred duty. With the help of God, we will succeed," he added.
However, but for the resolve of the lawmakers to carry on, the event would have ended abruptly.
On the eve of senators' trip to Sokoto, Kaduna and Jigawa, states to see firsthand, the effects of the menace, a former colleague and aide of the Senate president, Senator Emmanuel Okpede, died of heart-related problems at Abdullahi Wase Hospital in Kano.
It took all the will his colleagues could gather for the trip to go ahead "in the national interest."
In the end, the senators have once again concluded another major task. What remains is what they are likely to do with what they learnt and seen. In their communiquÈ, they urged the Presidency to respect their resolutions and help implement them because they are in the national interest.
It remains to be seen how far this request goes. That is assuming they play their own parts.
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