BY NSIKAK IKROK
As the 6th Assembly of the Akwa Ibom state legislature counts down to the completion of its second legislative year, it behoves one to probe into the workings of the institution with a view to determining how committed it has been to its primary task of providing humane legislation and other complementary functions required of a vibrant legislature in a contemporary democracy.
Past sessions of the state legislature have come and gone with their own legacies that will remain historic when posterity comes probing.
That assembly will also be remembered for playing an infamous role by drifting from the side of the people when the then executive sent an obnoxious pension bill for a hasty consideration and onward passage into law, which by every intent and purpose was anti-people.
Thus, that is how history will judge every government institution in terms of fulfilling its social contract with the people.
The 6th Assembly driven by 39-year-old Rt. Hon. Onofiok Luke, when x-rayed from June 2015, can be rightly justified as having tried its best to live within what one would expect of “The People’s Assembly” as it is popularly referred to.
Apart from playing its conventional role of enacting laws, the 6th Assembly has gone deeper into other forms of service delivery playing prominent oversight roles such as peace building, conflict resolution, human development via various economic empowerment packages, complementing the role of other organs of government in conducting public hearings on sensitive matters, maintaining industrial harmony in the state via constant dialogue with aggrieved employees, fostering mutual and peaceful co-existence with the executive arm, partnering with the traditional institution for communal peace, liaising with youths and all components of the society to strike a balance in the Akwa Ibom project.
Therefore it is not out of place if one gives a fair verdict that the 6th Assembly under Rt. Hon. Luke has performed beyond average in meeting the needs of its various constituents.
It is imperative to examine the workings of the state assembly looking at the bills, motions and resolutions presented and reached on the floor of the house by its members.
So far, 37 bills have been treated on the floor of the House while sundry developments categorized under matters of urgent public importance stand at 35. To cap it all, motions and resolutions so far treated stand at 48.
For want of time and space, a handful of these items will be examined in their order of preference.
The first motion of the 6th Assembly on Tuesday June, 16, 2015 was moved by Rt. Hon. Onofiok Luke which centered on “indiscriminate advertising and indiscriminate defacing of walls of our public educational institutions”.
After due deliberation, it was resolved that the state governor should direct that all adverts placed on walls and fences of public schools in the state be removed except the ones depicting educational materials and study guides.
Corporate bodies who placed these adverts were charged to pursue educational development for our young ones by showing some gesture of social responsibility via the donation of books, building of libraries, science equipment and other forms of assistance to schools rather than selfishly placing premium on adverts in the premises of these schools.
A motion against the proposed establishment of a Nuclear Power Plant in Itu was moved by Otuekong Nse Essien of Onna state constituency considering its harmful radioactive effects on humans and the obsolete nature of nuclear technology in the modern world.
This motion was translated to the house committee on environment for necessary action which has since been taken.
In August, 2015, there was also a motion seeking justice and due process in the brutal murder of one Daniel Bassey Solomon, an Uruan indigene who was allegedly murdered by an Anambra indigene.
The House resolved that the relevant committee should liaise with the law enforcement agencies to ensure due dispensation of justice while the state police commissioner was directed to ensure the prosecution of the culprit while a petition would be sent to the Inspector-General of police.
On the motion on incessant attacks by suspected militants on Okopedi indigenes in Ibiono Ibom local government area, the House resolved and made sure that security agents were mobilized to contain the situation along with the menace of sea pirate attacks in Effiat, Mbo local government area.
The House also waded into the fire outbreak incident at Ebughu fishing port in Mbo local government area, another fire disaster in Uton fishing settlement in Ibeno local government area and the invasion of Ikot Essen community by Fulani herdsmen.
Various decisions were taken by the house to assuage the pains of the various disaster victims by swiftly directing the State Emergency Management Agency to provide relief materials for the victims.
The House within the legislative year passed a motion that the state governor should undertake a review of existing clans in the state and create new ones where necessary with a view to addressing certain imbalances, while it responded with utmost urgency to a reported landslide that occurred along Nda-Enin-Itu Mbonusoh road in Ini lcal government area. In this regard, the House directed the Ministry of Works to effect remedial measures with immediate effect.
In its drive for the rediscovery of our identity, the House passed a resolution that the state Ministry of Education should make it compulsory for our native language to be compulsorily taught in our primary and post-primary schools to safeguard it from extinction.
In a motion for the rehabilitation of the Ukanafun Oil Mill for the provision of jobs to the indigenes, the house directed the state governor to instruct the Ministry of Commerce and other relevant agencies to take up the rehabilitation of the Mill.
On the motion to curb the proliferation of petrol stations within residential buildings and places of public assembly sponsored by Hon Aniekan Uko, it was resolved that the Fire Service and the Department of Petroleum Resources be made to be alive to enforcing minimum standards and stoppage of further work in this direction.
Coming on the front burner was the motion for the rehabilitation and re-opening of the Technical College, Ikot Ada Idem in Ibiono Ibom local government area.
A resolution was reached that the state government should look into this abandoned technology-based institution and also equip the existing seven technical colleges in the state for quality technical and vocational education.
Still within the period under review, a lot of positively conceived bills have been considered with some of them passed into law, some are pending assent by the executive while others are at various committee stages.
The latest is the Akwa Ibom College of Arts and Technology Bill sponsored by Hon, Uduak Ududoh of Ikot Abasi/Eastern Obolo state constituency.
This bill seeks to upgrade the status of the school situated at Nung Ukim, Ikono to a technology oriented tertiary institution strengthening it to attract several external funding benefits to Akwa Ibom indigenes studying there.
Passed into law was the local government law which took effect on June 10, 2016, a bill for a law to protect the physically challenged from discrimination is awaiting assent, a bill for a law for rent control is at the committee stage, a bill for a law to establish the Akwa Ibom state School of Health Technology for effective training of health professionals has been passed into law, a bill to amend the traditional rulers law has been passed into law, a bill for a law to create and regulate job opportunities for Akwa Ibom indigenes is still at the committee stage, a bill for a law to control and regulate cattle grazing in the state is still at the committee stage, a bill for the Akwa Ibom Youth development law to provide for the setting aside of 10% of derivation revenue for youth development and empowerment ventures and a host of other viable bills are still in their developmental stages in which when finally passed into law and given assent, will go a long way in making the state a model society.
Apart from bills, motions and resolutions, the 6th Assembly has at all times been very responsive to matters of urgent public importance such as the gas pipeline explosion at Ikot Osute in Oruk Anam local government area which it set up an ad-hoc committee to consult with the relevant federal agencies on the matter.
It waded into the indiscriminate sack of workers of the Akwa Ibom state University by its management, mediated in the case of non-payment of pensions brought by state government retirees and the case of continuous retirement of experienced nurses in the state service which is handled by the house committee on health.
Other matters of urgent public importance duly handled by the house also included the arbitrary increase in the pump prices of petroleum products via its committee on petroleum, illegal sand dredging at Ukpom Abak, the anchor poultry borrowers scheme which its ad-hoc committee handled effectively, the Ndito Eka Iba fire disaster in Ibeno which attracted the concern of the house to approach the state government and other relevant agencies to provide relief materials to the victims and rehabilitate them.
The 6th assembly has not rested on its oars as it has largely made tremendous contributions towards the amelioration of the sufferings of Akwa Ibom people such as in the case of the gully erosion menace on Calabar-Itu highway, Ikot Uko Ika and Obingwa communal crisis, flood disaster in Eket, illegal occupation of the Mangrove Island by Cameroun nationals, non-payment of compensation to Utu Etim Ekpo-Iwukem-Urua Inyang road construction victims of displacement, the deplorable state of the Technical College, Ikot Akata in Mkpat Enin and many others.
The House in the last one year has proven its mettle in the area of holistic representation.
It does seems that Speaker Onofiok Luke played the pivotal role in steering the House in this plausible direction following his massive empowerment project at his constituency outing in December.
It is on record that Luke arguably holds the record as the one lawmaker who, since the state’s return to democracy in 1999, has revolutionised the practice of economic empowerment and human capital development remaining unbeaten on this score.
In his first term, Luke held two large scale constituency empowerment programmes wherein he gave out over 15 vehicles in the first tranch and another 15 in the second tranch as part of an innovative constituency transport scheme.
At both briefings, at least 300 youths and women received an average of one hundred thousand Naira each as part of his small scale business support initiative.
This was apart from the hundreds of academic grants and scholarship funds to several hundreds of students. As Speaker, Onofiok upped the ante.
Another round of identified small scale businesses run by youths and women in his constituency received a boost when he gave them 150,000 Naira each to support their endeavours.
Artisans received tools to aid their services. Schools in his constituency were furnished with academic materials and computers, and hundreds more students received scholarships and grants.
The Speaker has severally said that his empowerment programmes “represent not just the redistribution of resources but the continuation of a journey towards sustainable development”.
From simple observation, it is believed he may have carried the entire house on this noble “journey” as evident since he became Speaker. Some members of the House have since begun massive constituency projects and empowerment programmes in their various constituencies, attempting to replicate what the speaker is doing in Nsit Ubium while the rest are jostling to keep a date with their various constituents in due course.
Observably, sound law making, impactful oversighting, far-reaching economic empowerment and human capital development seem to have become the hallmark of a parliament once known as an ineffectual Assembly.
The 6th Assembly has gone humanitarian by establishing a bridge between past lawmakers and the present ones. It makes its presence and generosity felt on the demise of any past member and offers scholarships to their survivors.
On inter-parliamentary relations, the Onofiok Luke led legislature has strengthened the conference of Speakers which is a rallying point for all Speakers of state legislatures in the country.
Exchange of visits, retreat for members, conferences and joint sessions among other state Assemblies have been pioneered by the 6th Assembly which has singled it out as first among equals inflating the image of the state.
The truth remains that the Assembly leadership in accordance with the rules of engagement in relation to its inaugural speech has vowed to keep on improving as it keeps legislating for common good.
Judging from some of the achievements listed here, one can only hope that the remaining two years shall be very rewarding and at the same time challenging as the stakes which have been raised must be sustained while new ones have to be raised for posterity to judge with satisfaction.
It must work hard to leave no bills unpassed and unassented to while resolutions must be passed with utmost fairness with the interest of the people at heart while peace, oneness and harmony should hold sway. — with Solomon B Asuquo and 23 others.
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