Officials argue that Parliament can effect the changes expected of a Sovereign National Conference.
The Nigerian Senate on Tuesday February 28, 2012 said it would not yield to growing calls for the holding of a Sovereign National Conference, SNC, to resolve the nation’s sticking problems. It warned that accepting such a proposal was an invitation to anarchy, The Guardian newspaper of Nigeria reported.
The Chairman, Senate Committee on Information, Media and Public Affairs, Enyinnaya H. Abaribe, disclosed the position of the upper chamber at a press conference in Abuja, denying claims that the Senate was afraid that the holding of any SNC would adversely affect the status of the National Assembly.
According to him, the lawmakers believe that the procedures stipulated in the constitution for its amendment are well spelt out and should be strictly adhered to. Insisting on the holding of SNC, he said, was tantamount to expressing lack of confidence in the current political system. Senator Abaribe advised that anyone willing to suggest changes to the constitution could do so through their parliamentarians, the Nigerian Tribune newspaper reported. He announced that the National Assembly had already set up committees to work on needed constitutional amendments both in the Senate and House of Representatives.
Earlier on February 17, the House of Representatives had also rejected the calls for the convocation of a Sovereign National Conference, arguing that it was meant for countries coming out of war, Thewill newspaper reported. The Chairman of the House Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Hon. Zakari Mohammed said as a full-fledged democracy, Nigeria could not afford to convene a Sovereign National Conference as it could end up creating more problems for the nation.
In another development, the newly inaugurated Chairman of the Petroleum Revenue Taskforce, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu has promised tough times for unscrupulous players in Nigeria’s oil sector, THISDAY said. The no-nonsense retired police officer and former chief of the anti-graft agency, EFCC, was speaking in the capital, Abuja after the commissioning of the 21-member taskforce. It was set up by government to enhance probity and accountability in operations of Nigeria’s petroleum industry after the recent nationwide crippling strike against the lifting of fuel subsidy.
