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From Ndubuisi Orji, Abuja
The chairman, House of Representatives, Committee on Navy, Yusuf Gagdi, has unveiled his programmes for the House, if elected speaker of the 10th assembly, with a promise to ensure that the voices of the “disenfranchised” are heard in the parliament.
Gagdi, while speaking at the event, on Saturday, in Abuja, said 24 years into the 4th republic, the citizens are expecting more from their representatives in the legislature. However, he stated that the ability of the House to meet the expectation of the people depends on the capacity and dedication of members.
Consequently, the lawmaker noted it is imperative to elect a leadership that will ensure that the 10th House is able to meet the high expectations of the people from the parliament.
According to him, “the manifesto, I am presenting to you today articulates the internal reforms of the House of Representatives I intend to pursue as Speaker, as well as the policy priorities I intend to champion through the legislative process. I am presenting this document today, because I want to initiate a national conversation about what the proper function of parliament in our country ought to be.
“It is also my desire to ensure that the campaign for the speakership of the 10th House of Representatives is informed by considerations of the substantial issues of our nationhood rather than the pedestrian concerns that too often influence our politics.”
Gagdi further stated that “twenty-four years since the return to democracy, the Nigerian people have rightly come to expect more from their parliamentary representatives. The ability of the House of Representatives to effectively meet those expectations depends on the quality, capacity and dedication of the members who serve in the parliament. It also depends on how the internal operations of the House are structured, designed and funded.
” It is not a good use of resources for the House of Representatives to spend all of its time on establishment bills. It is an aberration of democratic practice for the oversight committees of the national assembly to depend on the executive agencies under their purview to fund oversight activities.
“We need to open the operations of the House of Representatives to the Nigerian people so that they understand why we exist and why it is worthwhile to expend scarce resources on our operations.
“We need to ensure that the disenfranchised voices in our country are given an audience on the chamber floor and representation in the halls of the legislature. We need to make the House of Representatives a place of, an arena of patriotic and intelligent discourse and enlightened, informed decision-making.”
