Some stakeholders have urged the 10th National Assembly to strengthen its oversight functions to bolster public confidence in Nigeria’s democratic institutions.
They made the call on Thursday at a roundtable on ‘Best Practices and Strategies for Strengthening Legislative Oversight in Nigeria,’ organised by the National Institute for Legislative and Democratic Studies (NILDS).
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While the 10th National Assembly has constantly maintained that it does not need to be confrontational to assert its independence, some Nigerians believe it is a rubber stamp assembly that’s always doing the bidding of the President Bola Tinubu-led executive arm of the Federal government.
A former lawmaker, Nicholas Ossai, who delivered a paper titled “Identifying and Overcoming Key Challenges in Legislative Oversight in Nigeria with Emphasis on the 10th Assembly” at the event, said the 10th National Assembly stood at a pivotal moment in Nigeria’s democratic evolution.
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He identified institutional and structural developments, weak enforcement, poor follow-up mechanisms and excessive executive Influence as factors inhibiting efficient oversight functions of the legislature.
Mr Ossai, a member of the 7th, 8th and 9th national assembly, blamed poor oversight functions on capacity, resource constraints, corruption, integrity issues and low public engagement and transparency.
He recommended strengthening institutional and technical capacity, safeguarding oversight independence and promoting transparency and public participation to change the tide.
“By recognising the multifaceted challenges that have historically constrained oversight effectiveness and by implementing targeted legal, institutional and procedural reforms, the assembly can make progress.
“They must strengthen the legal framework, introduce effective follow-up mechanisms and strengthen legislative independence.
“The assembly must enhance technical capacity and resources, combat corruption, foster bipartisan cooperation, strengthen committee systems, improve implementation of oversight recommendations and increase public engagement and transparency.
“The assembly must address logistical and security constraints, clarify committee roles and mandates while strengthening sanctions and enforcements on failing committees,” he said.
Earlier in his remarks, the Director-General of NILDS, Abubakar Sulaiman, said that Sections 88, 89, 128 and 129 of the Constitution empower the legislature to conduct investigations and oversight.
Mr Sulaiman, a professor, however, said that questions continued to arise over the efficiency, focus and outcomes of such oversight processes.
According to him, they have witnessed instances where oversight mechanisms have been alleged to be weakly applied, poorly coordinated and sometimes misunderstood.
“It is, therefore, imperative that the exercise of oversight must be grounded in law, guided by evidence and implemented through functional and well-trained committees.
“It must be linked to the budget process, performance reviews, audit reports and citizen feedback,” he said.
The DG reiterated NILDS’s commitment to enhancing the capacity of legislators and their support staff through sustained training, research support and technical assistance.
He said the goal was to ensure that legislative oversight contributes meaningfully to improved governance outcomes, public trust and national development.
Also speaking, Ita Enag, a former member of the National Assembly, blamed the state of the economy for the poor oversight functions of the legislature.
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He said that if the legislature does its work to ensure that what was approved is implemented well and all agencies act within the law, the country would be better.
He said that if the legislature had asked the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Ltd. (NNPCL) the right questions, the value of the Naira would not have fallen, and revenue would have improved.
Although the National Assembly is constitutionally empowered to carry out legislative oversight functions, such responsibilities have often failed to yield impactful outcomes because of corruption, lack of requisite capacity and sometimes political interference, among other factors.
The state houses of assembly are even worse in discharging their oversight functions because they are often seen as extensions of the executive arm of government.
PREMIUM TIMES reported how a former lawmaker, Farouk Lawan, was jailed for five years for collecting US$500,000 as the chairperson of an ad-hoc committee probing fuel subsidy scam in 2012 from Femi Otedola to remove his company, Zenon Oil and Gas, from the list of companies indicted for fraud.
The dialogue, which was held at the institute’s headquarters in Abuja, brought together key stakeholders, including legislators, former National Assembly leaders, researchers, civil society organisations, and governance experts who critically examined the institutional, political, and procedural challenges impeding effective legislative oversight in Nigeria.
(NAN).
