From Aniekan Aniekan, Calabar
Cross River State Governor Bassey Otu has emphasised that the role of lawmakers extends far beyond executing projects.
Speaking at the Hillary Bisong Colloquium in Calabar, which focused on “Lawmaking & constitutional democracy: The Nigerian experience,” Governor Otu, represented by Commissioner for Education, Senator Stephen Odey, highlighted the importance of lawmaking.
“A lawmaker’s responsibility is to sponsor bills that benefit their people. People believe that when you are a lawmaker you execute projects, but the responsibility of a lawmaker is to sponsor bills that affect the people,” Governor Otu said. “Hon. Hillary Bisong has exemplified this by sponsoring eight bills that have been passed into law. No other contribution can be more significant than that.”
The governor welcomed the colloquium, noting that it would help people understand the roles of legislators and curtail pressure on lawmakers. “With this, excessive demands will be curtailed, and our lawmakers can focus on making laws for the good of our state,” he added.
Other speakers echoed similar sentiments. Eteng Jonas, lawmaker representing the Central Senatorial District, cited Section 4 of the constitution, which outlines a parliamentarian’s roles as lawmaking, representation, and oversight. “A lawmaker is not elected to fight the executive but to work together to attract benefits for their constituents,” he said.
Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Elvert Ayambem, emphasised that sponsoring bills that affect the people is a critical role of a lawmaker, which Hon. Bisong has consistently demonstrated.
In their virtual addresses, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Tajudeen Abbas, whose address was read by Professor Julius Ihonvbere, and Minister of State for Trade and Investment, Senator John Owan Enoh, commended Hon. Bisong for standing out and sponsoring laws that impact the people.
Other speakers, including Senator Florence Ita Giwa, Hon. Onofiok Luke, Hon. John Gaul, Pauline Ekuri, and Hon. Joseph Bassey, discussed the need for synergy between the executive and legislature for the overall benefit of the constituents.
Hon. Hillary Bisong, the member representing Boki 2 State Constituency, lamented the poor knowledge of the Nigerian constitution among the people. “The constitution is the single instrument that ushered in this democracy, yet most people don’t know its contents. This practice should change,” he said.