HON. YUSUF MAITAMA
TUGGAR
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Yar’Adua:What theConstitutionMissed
Yar’Adua:What theConstitutionMissed
Can Chukwumerije’sCSR Bill Survive?
Vol. 5 No. 1, January 2010
2Legislative Digest Vol. 5 No. 1, Janaury 2010
The essential ingredient of any
democratic process is the presence of
an executive president, who the people rou-
tinely elected as a mark of their mandate
for his/her governance.
Since November 23, 2009, President
Umaru Yar’Adua left the shores of Nigeria
in search of appropriate medical attention
in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. It is true
that the Islamic Republic has more mod-
ern, technically superior and reliable medi-
cal facilities and personnel.
What is of interest here is not the high-
brow medicaments and medics of the
Saudis. It is the very long absence of our
President from duty without properly no-
tifying the citizens, and the attendant power
vacuum created in the statecraft of the
country.
The trip began like the typical medical
tours African leaders undertake to seek
treatment for the slightest ailment, because
medical centres in their countries are sub-
standard, unreliable and cannot handle
cases relating to our number-one citizen.
It has now become more protracted than
any of such trips, however.
Since Yar’Adua’s departure for the
holy land, his country continues to slide in
all aspects – politically, economically, so-
cially and security-wise.
The fact that certain hawks around the
presidential palace have made the exercise
of presidential powers by Vice President
Goodluck Jonathan a no-go area has made
a caricature of our bourgeoning
democracy. Section 144 of the Constitu-
tion says the VP can play Mr. President if
his boss is indisposed, but the hawks have
persistently couched it as a political matter
that can be manipulated.
Of course, the President of the Court
of Appeal, Justice Dan Abutu recently or-
dered the Federal Executive Council (FEC)
to write the National Assembly within 14
days, on the State of health of
Yar’Adua. After a review of the report, the
federal legislators and the Executive Coun-
cil of the Federation have decided, respec-
tively, that the President should formally
notify the legislature of his absence and
that Jonathan was already as Acting Presi-
dent.
The leadership of the National Assem-
bly certainly has a moral burden of doing
what is of interest to the people of the
country. For one, the legislature represents
the electorate between election years and
it is expected to behave in like manner. If
the President is truly accountable to the
people, the National Assembly members
ought to compel him to do what is reason-
ably appropriate, nothwithstanding lacu-
nae in the Constitution. They ought to have
told Yar’Adua before now that he is an
employee of the Nigerian people, and no
employer would tolerate an employee that
bolts and disappears for even a week with-
out proper notification—and permission—
no matter the genuineness of the employ-
ee’s excuse.
Obviously, however, the politics of the
legislators’ candidatures for the 2011 gen-
eral elections, pursuit of mundane matters
and luxurious lifestyle, as well as exposure
to the vagaries of the normal life of aver-
age Nigerians have kept them on the edge
in sensitive national questions.
The legislature must urgently conclude
its review of the constitution in line with
the Senate’s wishes, making mandatory
statements on the presidency and gover-
nors and their deputies, because even the
spare tyre can have its own utility
value. Thereafter, they all travel on the same
electioneering train. For now, even a morsel
of courage on their part can suffice.
Presidency: RemoveConstitutional Impediments
E d i t o r i a l
Editorial Board
Cosmas Elaigwu
Odoh Diego Okenyodo
Lillian Chukwu
John Alechenu
Juliana Taiwo
James Ojo
Medina Dauda
This publication was funded by Oxfam NOVIB.
Produced for CISLAC by Isu Media Ltd
Published by the Civil Society Legislative
Advocacy Centre (CISLAC).
International Liaison:Tobias Eigen – USA; Olly Owen – UK;
Morten Hagen – UK
Contact Address
Head Office: AbujaNo. 5 Mahatma Ghandi Street, off ShehuShagari Way, by Bulet Garden, Asokoro,Abuja-Nigeria. Tel: 234-08033844646,
08052370333, 07034118266 Email: [email protected],
[email protected]: www.cislacnigeria.org ;
Regional Office: KanoNo. 110 ALYUMA HOUSE,
Maiduguri Road, Kano,Kano State, Nigeria
Tel: 234-07064016626
3Legislative Digest Vol. 5 No. 1, Janaury 2010
C o v e r S t o r y
By Lillian Chukwu
No doubt, the Nigerian Consti
tution is once again being
tested. The absence of the Presi-
dent, Umaru Yar’Adua, has gen-
erated a rumble that is almost
overwhelming the polity. But,
where has the 1999 Constitution
faltered?
For almost three months, the
office of the President had re-
mained incapacitated as the
number one citizen was hurriedly
flown out of the country to Saudi
Arabia for urgent medical atten-
tion.
The development created loop-
holes in the administration of state
matters. And, being the first time
in the history of Nigeria that such
a long vacuum would be created
in its leadership, analysts flipped
open the pages of the Constitution
to determine the next state of ac-
tion. This did not come without
some ‘unconstitutional’ incidences
and alleged infractions.
In December 2009, Yar’Adua
acting in capacity as a President
allegedly signed the 2009 supple-
mentary budget. The National As-
sembly had in November passed
President’s Absence:What the ConstitutionMissed
the N353.6 billion supplementary
budget. The signing of the budget
was done on the last day of the
mandatory 30 days provided in
section 58 (4) of the 1999 consti-
tution within which the President
must assent to the budget or risk
its unilateral passage by the Na-
tional Assembly.
Media reports indicated that
Yar’Adua’s signature might have
been forged.
Also in the same period, the
Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Jus-
tice Idris Legbo Kutigi, swore in his
successor, Justice Aloysius
Katsina-Alu, an unheard-of occur-
rence since the existence of the
Nigerian judiciary. Katsina-Alu was
on December 16 confirmed by the
Senate as the next CJN, following
his nomination the previous month
by Yar’Adua to take over from
Kutigi, who was to retire as CJN
on December 31. Traditionally,
CJNs in the country are sworn in
by the President.
Against these backgrounds and
unfolding events, the then Attor-
ney-General of the Federation
(AGF) and Minister of Justice,
Michael Aondoakaa, argued that
signing of the supplementary fi-
nancial plan by the President in the
King Faisal Specialist Hospital in
Jeddah and the AGF swearing in
the new CJN were all justifiable.
Over 100 lawyers, including
human right activist Femi Falana,
went to court seeking to formally
compel a proper hand over to Vice
President Goodluck Jonathan. A
constitutional crisis threatened to
consume the polity.
What does the constitution
state on the matter on the absence
of a President after a stipulated
period? According to section 145
of the 1999 Nigerian constitution
which reads: Whenever the Presi-
dent transmits to the President of the
Senate and the Speaker of the
House of Representatives a written
declaration that he is proceeding on
vacation or that he is otherwise un-
able to discharge the functions of his
office, until he transmits to them a
written declaration to the contrary
such functions shall be discharged
by the Vice-President as Acting
President.
But legal personages like Festus
Keyamo have continued to fault the
clause which gives ultimate power
to the President as he is allowed to
determine when to hand over
power and also to determine when
to take it back.
In a recent development, the
Senate rose to a resolution man-
dating the Vice-President to be-
come the acting President and the
Commander-in Chief of the Armed
Forces. According to the Senate
President, David Mark, “there is
the need for a review on section
Goodluck Jonathan... Finally, made
Acting President.
Over 100 lawyers went to courtseeking to formally compel a
proper hand over to Vice PresidentGoodluck Jonathan.
4Legislative Digest Vol. 5 No. 1, Janaury 2010
145 of the constitution as
quickly as possible.”
The resolution by the Na-
tional Assembly has not
doused the heightened appre-
hension among Nigerian citi-
zens because the route
through which the VP was en-
throned as President has gen-
erated another round of constitu-
tional debates.
For a constitutional require-
ment, can a political solution be-
come a substitute? Is it illegal, like
most analysts have said? The 1999
Constitution clearly states how a
vice president can become acting
president. Section 143 outlines the
processes of impeachment; Section
144 dwells on his removal from
office on medical grounds while
Section 145 prescribes how he
transfers power to the vice presi-
dent. These are the only three con-
ditions where the Constitution al-
lows a vice president step up to
become acting president or presi-
dent.
Sections 143; 144 and 145
states thus:
“143 (1) The President or Vice-
President may be removed from
office in accordance with the pro-
visions of this section.
“(2) Whenever a notice of any al-
legation in writing signed by not
less than one-third of the members
of the National Assembly:
“(a) is presented to the President
of the Senate;
“(b) stating that the holder of the
office of President or Vice-President
is guilty of gross misconduct in the
performance of the functions of his
office, detailed particulars of which
shall be specified,
“the President of the Senate
shall within seven days of the re-
ceipt of the notice cause a copy
thereof to be served on the holder
of the office and on each member
of the National Assembly, and shall
also cause any statement made in
reply to the allegation by the holder
of the office to be served on each
member of the National Assembly.
“(3) Within fourteen days of the
presentation of the notice to the
President of the Senate (whether
or not any statement was made by
the holder of the office in reply to
the allegation contained in the no-
tice) each House of the National As-
sembly shall resolve by motion
without any debate whether or not
the allegation shall be investigated.
“(4) A motion of the National
Assembly that the allegation be
investigated shall not be declared
as having been passed, unless it is
supported by the votes of not less
than two-thirds majority of all the
members of each House of the Na-
tional Assembly.
“(5) Within seven days of the
passing of a motion under the fore-
going provisions, the Chief Justice
of Nigeria shall at the request of
the President of the Senate appoint
a Panel of seven persons who in
his opinion are of unquestionable
integrity, not being members of any
public service, legislative house or
political party, to investigate the
allegation as provide in this sec-
tion.
“(6) The holder of an office
whose conduct is being investi-
gated under this section shall have
the right to defend himself in per-
son and be represented before the
Panel by legal practitioners of
his own choice.
“(7) A Panel appointed un-
der this section shall -
“(a) have such powers and
exercise its functions in ac-
cordance with such procedure
as may be prescribed by the
National Assembly; and
“(b) within three months of its
appointment report its findings to
each House of the National Assem-
bly.
“(8) Where the Panel reports to
each House of the National Assem-
bly that the allegation has not been
proved, no further proceedings
shall be taken in respect of the
matter.
“(9) Where the report of the
Panel is that the allegation against
the holder of the office has been
proved, then within fourteen days
of the receipt of the report at the
House the National Assembly shall
consider the report, and if by a
resolution of each House of the
National Assembly supported by
not less than two-thirds majority
of all its members, the report of the
Panel is adopted, then the holder
of the office shall stand removed
from office as from the date of the
adoption of the report.
“(10) No proceedings or deter-
mination of the Panel or of the Na-
tional Assembly or any matter re-
lating thereto shall be entertained
or questioned in any court.
“(11) In this section -
“ “gross misconduct” means a
grave violation or breach of the
provisions of this Constitution or
a misconduct of such nature as
amounts in the opinion of the Na-
tional Assembly to gross miscon-
duct.
“144. (1) The President or Vice-
President shall cease to hold office,
if -
n C o v e r S t o r y
For a constitutional requirement, can apolitical solution become a substitute? Is itillegal, like most analysts have said? The
1999 Constitution clearly states how a vicepresident can become acting president.
5Legislative Digest Vol. 5 No. 1, Janaury 2010
“(a) by a resolution passed by
two-thirds majority of all the mem-
bers of the executive council of the
Federation it is declared that the
President or Vice-President is in-
capable of discharging the func-
tions of his office; and
“(b) the declaration is verified,
after such medical examination as
may be necessary, by a medical
panel established under subsec-
tion (4) of this section in its report
to the President of the Senate and
the Speaker of the House of Rep-
resentatives.
“(2) Where the medical panel
certifies in the report that in its
opinion the President or Vice-Presi-
dent is suffering from such infir-
mity of body or mind as renders
him permanently incapable of dis-
charging the functions of his office,
a notice thereof signed by the Presi-
dent of the Senate and the Speaker
of the House of Representatives
shall be published in the Official
Gazette of the Government of the
Federation.
“(3) The President or Vice-Presi-
dent shall cease to hold office as
from the date of publication of the
notice of the medical report pur-
suant to subsection (2) of this sec-
tion.
“(4) the medical panel to which
this section relates shall be ap-
pointed by the President of the
Senate, and shall comprise five
medical practitioners in Nigeria:-
“(a) one of whom shall be the
personal physician of the holder of
the office concerned; and
“(b) four other medical practi-
tioners who have, in the opinion of
the President of the Senate, at-
tained a high degree of eminence
in the field of medicine relative to
the nature of the examination to
be conducted in accordance with
the foregoing provisions.
“(5) In this section, the refer-
ence to “executive council of the
Federation” is a reference to the
body of Ministers of the
Government of the Federation,
howsoever called, established by
the President and charged with
such responsibilities for the
functions of government as the
President may direct.
“145. Whenever the President
transmits to the President of the
Senate and the Speaker of the
House of Representatives a writ-
ten declaration that he is proceed-
ing on vacation or that he is oth-
erwise unable to discharge the
functions of his office, until he
transmits to them a written dec-
laration to the contrary such func-
tions shall be discharged by the
Vice-President as Acting Presi-
dent.”
Nigerians are once again divided
on the Assembly’s easy solution.
Some aggrieved Nigerians would
want this issue of Yar’Adua’s re-
fusal to transmit a vacation letter
dealt with properly once and for all.
The Action Congress (AC) has al-
ready flawed the decision, which it
has called illegal. The National As-
sembly’s resolution, thus, may not
stand a flurry of litigations which
are inevitable under the circum-
stances at hand.
Will the executive council of the
federation do as the Constitution
has prescribed and save the day?
It is a known fact that the presi-
dent is presently incapacitated.
His silence since the “BBC clip”
only confirms that he is truly in-
capacitated.
The council should do what is
best for the country and the Nige-
rian people; which is, begin a proc-
ess of constitutionally declaring the
president incapacitated just like
Professor Dora Akunyili stated in
her memo.
If the council fails in its most
crucial assignment today, then the
question becomes, can this politi-
cal solution stand in a competent
court of law?
The political solution employed
by the National Assembly to install
Jonathan as acting president has
not doused the uncertainty in the
land because the means through
which he assumed office has
thrown up another round of con-
stitutional debates.
n C o v e r S t o r y
Nigerians are once again divided on the Assembly’s easy solution.Some aggrieved Nigerians would want this issue of Yar’Adua’s refusal
to transmit a vacation letter dealt with properly once and for all. TheAction Congress (AC) has already flawed the decision, which it has
called illegal. The National Assembly’s resolution, thus, may not standa flurry of litigations which are inevitable under the circumstances at
hand.
Yar’Adua
6Legislative Digest Vol. 5 No. 1, Janaury 2010
By Juliana Taiwo
Ahead of 14th Ordinary Session
of the Assembly of the African Un-
ion, which commenced on January
25 to February 2, 2010, in Addis
Ababa, the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung
(FES) –Addis Ababa Office— had in-
vited African journalists and editors
from Nigeria, Kenya, Tanzania,
Uganda, Sudan, Egypt and Zimba-
bwe.
The training focused on the In-
stitutional transformation of the
African Union, the Structure of the
African Union Summit, update on
the current conflicts in Africa, the
civil society organisations’ engage-
ment with the Regional Economic
Communities (REC) and the Afri-
can Union and the discussion on
the African Union Authority/Union
Government.
All through the different presen-
tations and the discussions that
followed suit, Nigeria continuing to
be without President Umaru Musa
Yar’Adua and the fact that Vice
President Goodluck Jonathan had
not been given executive powers to
perform were not only the butt of
jokes but also a source of concern
for participants.
Each reference made to Nigeria
on any issue, be it her contributions
at the African Union, which include
the 15% of the $165 million of the
annual budget of the union, high-
est contributor of troops to peace-
keeping missions in the continent
as well as her important role in the
Economic Community of West Af-
rican States (ECOWAS) including
holding the chairmanship, it was
sad to see how Nigeria was being
made fun of. What was even more
worrisome was the misinterpreta-
tions of the renewed mindless may-
hem and blood-letting that erupted
in the Plateau State capital on Sun-
day, January 17, 2010, which left
200 people dead and many houses,
including worship places. Many
here thought it was in protest of
President Yar’Adua’s absence.
But in the midst of the jokes
which usually left the two of us (par-
ticipants from Nigeria) head bowed,
it was also clear that the implica-
tions were scary to the participants
who took time off during lunch
break to talk to me about the dan-
gers, especially as the continent was
still young in democratic practice
of Nigeria continuous status with-
out a leader.
According to one of the partici-
pants from the West African sub-
region, “The situation is not under-
standable and cannot be explained
either. Nigeria is regarded as the big
brother in the continent so it is dif-
ficult to understand why only one
person will hold close to 150 mil-
lion Nigerians to ransom. Does it
mean that there are no systems in
place to check this kind of develop-
ment? Does it mean the system in
place is so weak as to watch this
drama go on for two months? His
continuous absence is also a threat
to the amnesty programme he in-
troduced which was welcomed by
many across Africa to resolve the
Niger Delta crisis. I think is a very
aweful situation for Nigeria and the
fear is that if it continues it might
lead to crisis, which might tow the
religious and ethnic divide and the
political calculations which right
now favours the north to rule for
the next eight years might not be
tolerated if truncated which ex-
plains why they are reluctant to
have the Vice President take over.
“Regionally, Nigeria is now lead-
ing the ECOWAS President
Yar’Adua is the Chairman of
ECOWAS. The ECOWAS Summit
was supposed to be held on Decem-
ber 21, 2009, it was postponed to
January 18th 2010 and again it has
been postponed to February 15th
and I am not sure if it will hold on
that date if he does not return. In
fact, it is important to let you know
that the President of ECOWAS,
Mohammed Ibn Chambas’ tenure
will end March 1st, 2010 and we do
not know what will be the situation
since the chairman has not decided
because there has to be a meeting
with other presidents of the region
to make critical decisions. They
have to decide if the Vice President
of ECOWAS is going to take over or
are we going to replace Chambas
with another Ghanaian or what will
be the new formula, all these the
presidents have to decide.
“There are also other important
decisions affecting the region. For
instance, there will be elections in
Togo and everybody knows that in
the last election in Guinea Bissau,
Nigeria helped to airlift the
equipments, trucks, etc, and some-
times those decisions can only be
taken by the presidents. So you ask
yourself what will happen with
those elections if President
Yar’Adua does not come back. Also,
the situation in Niger Republic, he
has to decide on it because former
Nigeria’s Head of State,
Abdulsalami Abubakar is the one
mediating there. The situation now
in Guinea Conakry, there is a step
backwards. There is a mediator who
has been nominated and is now in
Burkina Faso but if ECOWAS has
to take the decision to be involved,
you have to rely on the chairman
and no provision has been made if
the chairman is not around on how
to replace him and if you try to re-
place him there is fear that there
might be protests. So his continu-
ous absence also threatens the sub-
region, whether we like it or not.”
YYYYYar’Adua:ar’Adua:ar’Adua:ar’Adua:ar’Adua: Nig Nig Nig Nig Nigeria Butt oferia Butt oferia Butt oferia Butt oferia Butt of J J J J Jokokokokoke in e in e in e in e in AdAdAdAdAddisdisdisdisdis Ababa
R e p o r t
7Legislative Digest Vol. 5 No. 1, Janaury 2010
What are your comments on
the recent violence in Jos,
your state capital?
This is a sad development in the
annals of the state. The mayhem
was uncalled for. Brothers who had
Rep to Executive:
ImplementPrevious Panels’Recommendationsto End Jos Crisis
Like a recurring decimal, sectarian
violence broke out in Jos, the
Plateau state capital, which added
to the anxiety created by the
continued absence of President
Umaru Yar’Adua from the country
over health issues. Honourable
George Daika, a National Assembly
member representing Shendam/
Mikan/ Quanpam Federal
Constituency of Plateau State in the
Lower Chamber, in an interview on
the perennial violent conflict, said
that the only way to put an end to it
is for government to muster enough
muscle to implement
recommendations of previous panels
of inquiry.
been living together in peace just
wake up to start killing themselves,
this is unnecessary, we are trying
to talk to ourselves to stop the
senseless killings and destruction
of houses and other property. Jos
is a peaceful place to live, the cli-
mate is conducive and business
flourishes in the state, but when
you have this kind of hiccups, peo-
ple will be discouraged to come to
your place to carry out business
I n t e r v i e w
Continued on page 12
Hon. George Daika
8Legislative Digest Vol. 5 No. 1, Janaury 2010
F e a t u r e
By Odoh Diego Okenyodo
Early in 2009, the business
community woke to an at-
tempt to compel companies to un-
dertake corporate social responsi-
bility initiatives with 3.5% of their
earnings before tax. The bill osten-
sibly wanted to set up a commis-
sion to coordinate all CSR. The
companies fought back. There was
a public hearing in December 2009
and there has been silence after.
No one can ascertain the true state
of the attempted legislation.
Though it is not easy (nor ap-
propriate) to legislate philanthropy,
the rationale for attempting to com-
pel Nigerian businesses to show
some kindness is extant. Nigerian
companies operate in rather cold-
hearted and impenetrable fashion,
showing no connection with the
often-impoverished communities
around them. According to an ex-
planatory note to the bill, “Com-
panies deriving benefits and max-
imising profits from communities
are not appropriately responding
to needs of host communities
through strategic philanthropy,
environmental protection, and
community development.”
Nonetheless, it can be argued
that an equally unkind business
environment appears to have con-
ditioned the companies to glue
themselves to as much naira as
they can. Often, companies have
had to build their own roads, wa-
ter and electric supply sources,
employ their own security person-
nel, and many other ancillaries
that are taken for granted in some
other climes. Such strenuous prac-
tice explained the collapse of Ni-
geria’s textile industries.
This was the argument that led
the Nigerian Employers Consulta-
tive Association (NECA), a strong
member of the organised private
sector (OPS), to mobilise business
organisations in the country to join
an anti-CSR Bill lobby team. They
deployed themselves into media
and the National Assembly, work-
ing assiduously against the pas-
sage of the bill into law.
They argued that making CSR
compulsory would amount to an
umpteenth form of taxation and
that they are already overtaxed.
Companies operating in Nigeria
pay withholding tax, company in-
come tax, value-added tax, and a
host of other official duties and lev-
ies from local, state and federal
governments. These fees and lev-
ies often overlap and strain rela-
tions between businesses and gov-
ernments, as well as between
businesses and shareholders/em-
ployees (whose incomes dwindle,
as a result) and customers (who are
made to pay more).
Thus, the director-
general of the Nigerian
Employers Consultative
Association (NECA), Mr.
Olusegun Oshinowo, had
stepped up mobilisation
to stop the Senator Uche
Chukwumerije-spon-
sored legislation. He called on mul-
tinational corporations in the
country, indigenous firms, and the
OPS, to join forces to stop the pas-
sage of the CSR bill, which he con-
tended would further drag the na-
tion’s economy backward. The
group argued that CSR should re-
main as voluntary as it had been
all around the world. Nigeria was
going to become the first country
in the world to legislate CSR.
“The Bill seeks to establish the
Corporate Social Responsibility
Commission for the control and
regulation of the activities of Cor-
porate Organisations in Nigeria,”
Senator Chukwumerije, represent-
ing Abia North constituency, said
in the explanatory note referred to
above. It is entitled A Bill For An
Act To Provide For The Establish-
ment Of The Corporate Social Re-
sponsibility Commission. Perhaps,
it would be one commission too
many.
Can Chukwumerije’sCSR Bill Survive?
Companies argue that making CSRcompulsory would amount to an
umpteenth form of taxation and thatthey are already overtaxed.
Senator Uche Chukwumerije
9Legislative Digest Vol. 5 No. 1, Janaury 2010
Nigeria’s House of Representa
tives in a landmark move has
passed into second reading a bill
for an act to provide for measures
to combat terrorism and for related
matters. This will no doubt send
the signal to convince the United
States of America [USA] and the
rest of the world that the country
is not a haven to breed terrorist.
The bill, which is titled “Preven-
tion of Terrorism Bill 2009 (HB
322)” is sponsored by the Execu-
tive and it is making a return to
the chamber because the last As-
sembly failed to pass it into law.
But more importantly, the bill
is enjoying the support of members
following a failed attempt to blow
up an America passenger craft by
23-year-old Nigeria born Umar
Farouk Abdultallab on December
25th 2009 [Christmas Day].
The US government followed it
up by including Nigeria among 14
nations of the world placed on ter-
ror watch list.
The fact that the bill was mak-
ing its second appearance on the
floor of the Nigerian parliament and
RRRRReeeeeps okaps okaps okaps okaps okay anti-tery anti-tery anti-tery anti-tery anti-terrrrrror billor billor billor billor bill
the failed attempt to bomb the US
plane is an indication that the
country is not supporting terror-
ism.
The Farouk Abdultallab saga
only adds impetus to accelerate
the quick passage of the bill into
law and this was exactly what hap-
pened on the first day the bill was
read, as no member opposed the
bill for scaling the second reading.
And what does the bill, which
was sent by President Umaru
Yar’Adua to the National Assem-
bly, tends to achieve now as a ‘ter-
ror nation’ by US standards?
The bill seeks to provide for
measures for the prevention, pro-
hibition and combating of acts of
terrorism, the financing of terror-
ism in Nigeria and for the effective
implementation of the Convention
on the prevention and combating
terrorism and the Convention on
the suppression of the financing of
terrorism, in addition to prescrip-
tion of penalties for violating any
of the provisions of the bill.
When the bill becomes an act
of parliament and signed into law
Dimeji Bankole
by the President, it will be against
the laws of the Federal Republic of
Nigeria for any body or group of
persons to be found guilty by a
court of engaging in activities to
assiste or facilitate any act of ter-
ror, capable of tarnishing the im-
age of the country.
Also, it is assumed that provid-
ers of logistics in equipment and
providers of funds with intention
to carry out acts of terrorism in any
disguise would be liable for con-
viction.
There are shall be a Director
General who will initiate proceed-
ings against suspected terrorists by
approaching the Judge in cham-
bers with ample evidence of acts
relating to terror.
In all, the bill is divided into 5
parts 32 sections, including the ti-
tle page. Section 28, in Part 5, of
the bill, stipulated that with out
prejudice to the general powers of
the Attorney General of the Fed-
eration to institute and undertake
criminal proceedings on behalf of
the Government, any agency
charged with the responsibility of
terrorist investigation shall have
powers to institute criminal pro-
ceedings against any person in re-
spect of offences categorised un-
der the act.
Life imprisonment was pre-
scribed for any conviction under
sections 1 to 10 or a fine of
N150milin or both, while in the
case of an offence under sec-
tions2,3,4,5,8,9,12,13 and 14,
imprisonment for a term not less
than 3 years and not exceeding 20
years among other terms of pun-
ishment.
Farouk Abdulmutallab
B i l l
10Legislative Digest Vol. 5 No. 1, Janaury 2010
Photos from CISLAC’s
Gender Policy Formulation Workshop
Photos from CISLAC’s
L-R: Josephine Alabi, Muhammad Zubair and Naomi Goyo.
Gender expert, Mrs. Bunmi Dipo-Salami
making a point at the workshop.CISLAC staff at the Gender Policy Formulation Workshop.
with support from Oxfam Novib
11Legislative Digest Vol. 5 No. 1, Janaury 2010
Assistant Programme Officer, Mr Onyedikachi Izuegbu at
the workshop.
Ms Naomi Goyo (Assistant Programme Officer) and Ms Annabel
Ezehi.
Executive Director of CISLAC, Auwal Musa Rafsanjani engages
in a chat with two guests.
CISLAC’s in-house volunteer, Ezenwa
Nwagwu, middle,with other CISLAC staff.
Rhema Ehiemere, Project Officer, Annabel Ezehi listening
attentively to Bunmi Dipo-Salami.
12Legislative Digest Vol. 5 No. 1, Janaury 2010
and contribute to the development
of your area, but we are happy that
steps have taken to nip the crisis
in the bud. The security agencies
have moved in to restore sanity so
that people will live a normal life.
This is not the first time the
state capital will be engulfed in
such clashes?
Yes, you are right, Jos and even
other parts of the state had been
visited with violence before, that is
why I said that it is very sad. No
sane person will support what is
going on in the state capital, but I
think that the failure to implement
recommendations of past panels of
inquiry set up to probe similar cri-
ses has not help matters and this
is quite unfortunate. I will say that
the policy of impunity and lack of
political will on the part of the state
and federal government to imple-
ment recommendations of investi-
gations of violence outbreaks were
responsible for the constant con-
flicts and killings in the Plateau.
In your understanding of the
remote and immediate causes of
the recent conflict, what do you
think will stop such ugly inci-
dents?
The truth must be told always
and as a representative of the peo-
ple, government needs to wake up
and be ready to implement recom-
mendations of panels set up to
probe similar violence. One thing
that has come out of the serial kill-
ings and destructions is that it
normally takes the same pattern.
Government will react to a riot
after quelling it and set up a panel,
the panel will gather information
from the victims of the violence and
make recommendations to prevent
a repeat.
All you will see is that the rec-
ommendations will be kept some-
where and allowed it to gather dust
until one day violence will rear its
ugly head again. This has been the
pattern and you ask, why is gov-
ernment afraid to carry out the rec-
ommendations of the panel of emi-
nent citizens trusted to do a
thorough job?
So, I will still go back to what I
said earlier, that government at the
State and Federal level should be
courageous enough to punish who-
ever is linked with sponsoring the
killings and destruction of proper-
ties to satisfy personal ego and self-
ish interest. Government, I want
to believe, knows the remote and
immediate causes of the Jos riots
and those behind it. Let govern-
ment summon the courage to bring
them to book; nobody will promote
violence again on the Plateau.
Government should also be pre-
pared to engage the jobless youths
of the state in productive endeav-
ours and encourage the spirit of
healthy competition to excel in any
chosen career. Most of the youths
engaged by the political class in the
mayhem are redundant due to un-
employment; there is need for the
government and well placed indi-
viduals to provide means of liveli-
hood for them.
What is your message to your
constituency and people of Pla-
teau state in general?
I want to call on all well mean-
ing indigenes of the state to be tol-
erant and give back to the com-
munity in the spirit of love. I want
to commiserate with the people
that have lost their lives in the
course of the conflicts and I want
the State government to urgently
convene meetings of religious lead-
ers, ethnic groups, community
leaders including traditional rulers
and other interest groups in the
state with a view to engaging them
regularly in dialogues on how to
keep the peace. Government
should bridge the gap between the
religious and cultural groups in the
state; Christians and Muslims in
the state should collaborate with
the traditional rulers from time to
time to iron out their differences,
instead of allowing it to fester. On
the part of security agencies, it is
necessary for them to check the
influx of hoodlums into the state,
as it has been discovered that the
majority of those used by trouble
makers to perpetrate the heinous
crimes are non-indigenes. You can
see that in the recent arrest made
by the security agencies, it clearly
showed that those used in perpe-
trating the mayhem are from
neighbouring states, even though,
it is acceptable that Plateau state
is the home for all.
Continued from page 7
n I n t e r v i e w
Government, I want to believe, knows the remote and immediatecauses of the Jos riots and those behind it. Let government summon
the courage to bring them to book; nobody will promote violenceagain on the Plateau. Government should also be prepared to engage
the jobless youths of the state in productive endeavours andencourage the spirit of healthy competition to excel in any chosen
career. Most of the youths engaged by the political class in themayhem are redundant due to unemployment
13Legislative Digest Vol. 5 No. 1, Janaury 2010
YUSUF MAITAMA
TUGGAR
Hon. Yusuf Maitama Tuggar was born 12th of March, 1967. He
attended Kano Corona Trust School, Kano, from 1972–
1978 and Federal Government College Ilorin, Kwara State
1978–1983. He proceeded to St. Bede’s School, The
Dicker, near Hail sham, East Sussex, England for his ‘A’
levels in Economics, Geography and English/European
History 1983–1985. He moved on to the United States
International University, San Diego, California, where he
obtained a Bachelor’s Degree in International Relations
and was a Dean’s list Student bio featured in Dean’s List
Publication 1988.
Hon. Tuggar began his working career
as a businessman supplying
chemicals to Nigerian refineries in
1990 before moving on to oil trad-
ing with Petroil Trading and
Tuguma Enterprises. He became
an oil & gas consultant focusing
on the upstream as from the year
2000 and has carried out ac-
claimed studies focusing on politi-
cal risk, including one titled ‘Illicit
Bunkering and the Niger Delta En-
vironment’. He has carried out ex-
tensive studies in the oil and gas
sector on behalf of local and inter-
national clients. Along with other
business associates, he founded a
company named Movido E & P that
successfully bided for an oil field
during the 2002 Nigerian Marginal
field farmout exercise (Ekeh field
OML88).
The astute businessman came
into politics and was elected to the
Federal House of Representatives,
representing Gamawa Federal
Constituency of Bauchi State in
May 2007 (the same seat had at
one time been occupied by his late
father Senator Abubakar Tuggar
in the second Republic). The
younger Tuggar is currently the
Chairman of the House Commit-
tee on Public Procurement (Due
Process), member Petroleum Up-
stream committee, Foreign Affairs
committee and committee on Ag-
riculture. His acknowledgeable
contributions as a member of the
Petroleum Upstream committee
may have informed his recent se-
lection as a member on Ad-hoc
committee charged with the task
of investigating the activities of the
Nigerian National Petroleum Cor-
poration (NNPC) from 1999 to
2007. He is married and blessed
with two children and his main
hobby remains reading.
CONSTITUENCYOUTREACH
Determined to alleviate poverty and
also to ameliorate the transportation
problems within his constituency, Hon.
Yusuf Maitama Tuggar has donated
over 60 motorcycles to members of his
constituency.
DISTRIBUTION OF
MOTORCYCLES
n P r o f i l e
14Legislative Digest Vol. 5 No. 1, Janaury 2010
·An Udubo ultra
modern Alkali
Abubakar Education
Research and
Training Centre, one
in the state located
at Udubo, Gamawa
Federal Constitu-
ency built in 2009 by
Hon. Yusuf Maitama
Tuggar.
POTISKUM-UDUBO-GAMAWA-GAMAYIN FEDERAL ROAD·Hon. Yusuf Tuggar pioneered the inclusion of the abandoned Potiskum-Udubo-
Gamawa-Gamayin Federal road which had been abandoned in the 2009 budget. He
championed the release of the sum of N400, 000,000 for the continuation of the
project and the completion of the road.
OTHER PROJECTS·Currently, six different educational and
water projects have been allocated to
various villages of Hon. Yusuf Tuggar’s
constituency. These include: construc-
tion of 3 classroom blocks in Karba,
Wabu and Aido, supply of healthcare
equipment at Kore/Kubdiya ward and
drilling of motorised powered borehole
in Udubo town.
At the Gamawa Satellite Prison during the borehole re-launch.
P r o f i l e
WATER PROJECTS·The picture below shows the former Deputy Governor of Bauchi State, Alhaji Muhammadu Garba Gadi commissioning one
of the boreholes in the constituency. On September 4th, 2007, Hon. Tuggar set up a 3-man team to collect and collate data on
functional and non-functional boreholes within the constituency. The team later reported that only 20% percent out of the total
number of boreholes in the constituency were functional. Consequently, Hon. Tuggar put machinery in place and repaired
BATCH-TWO HAJJ
SPONSORSHIP·Hon. Tuggar during the 2008 Hajj
exercise sponsored five persons from
his constituency namely; Jalla Ubali
Gamawa, Abubakar Umar (Sarkin
Raga), Mubi Abubakar, Jummai
Abubakar and Asabe Rabi’u Tuggar.
over 60 hand-pumps and motorised
boreholes.·He also inaugurated a committee to
handle the maintenance and repairs of
these boreholes at ward level and
headquarters finding the lasting
solution to lack of maintenance.
Former Deputy Governor of Bauchi
State, Garba Gadi, commissioning
borehole built by Tuggar.
DISTRIBUTION OF SEWING
AND SPAGHETTI MAKING
MACHINES·Honourable Tuggar purchased and
distributed over one hundred sewing
and spaghetti making machines within
the constituency. The distribution was
done during his poverty alleviation
programme and was given mainly to
housewives and unemployed members
of his constituency.
·Hon. Tuggar donated a Honda Odys-
sey car to the Gamawa Local Govern-
ment Secretariat of the All Nigeria Peo-
ples Party (ANPP). This was to alleviate
the transportation problems of the local
government branch of the party.
DONATION OF AN ODYSSEY
HONDA CAR
Continued from page 14
15Legislative Digest Vol. 5 No. 1, Janaury 2010
As the Senior Special Assist
ant to the President on the
Millennium Development Goals
(MDGs), Mrs. Amina Moham-
med Az-Zubair is responsible for
ensuring that Nigeria achieves
the targets of the programme.
Born of a Nigerian father from
Gombe State and a British
mother from Wales, she had her
elementary education in Nigeria
before finishing her higher
education in the Isle of Man.
She was a partner in Afri-
Project Consortium which
designed framework for Petro-
leum Trust Fund in the 90s and later national coordinator for Education-For-All (EFA), before joining
the team that designed a mechanism on how to spend the gains of the Debt Relief which the country
acquired in 2005 for poverty related programmes. A very eloquent and pragmatic personality, she is a
Member of various global institutions including Expert Group on Education of the Global Governance
Initiative of the World Economic Forum and Technical Expert on numerous UNESCO activities. She is
advisor to the Gates Foundation; a Governor of the Canadian International Development research
Center (IDRC) and serves on the board of the National Human Rights Commission and AWOMI based
in Dakar . She is a recipient of the National Honours of the Officer of the Federal Republic (OFR) be-
stowed on her in 2006 and inducted into the Nigerian Women’s Hall of Fame in 2007. In this interview
with the Economic Confidential, Mrs. Amina Az-Zubair talks on MDGs and its relationship with various
stakeholders including legislators, states and funding. Excerpts…
With the deadline of 2015
around the corner, can you meet the
MDGs target?
We probably would have gone a lot further than
we have now if we had paid attention from the word
go in 2000. But really the emphasis on tending
towards achieving the MDGs did not really take off
before 2005, where we really put them into the
budget, then we focused on it and we got the debt
relief. I think the 2015 goal is attainable. What makes
it difficult is that we are Federal system, three tiers of
government for which we don’t have absolute control
over constitutional responsibilities of states and local
HowLegislaturehelps usmeetmillenniumdevelopmentgoals
I n t e r v i e w
Mrs. Amina Mohammed Az-Zubair
Continued on next page
16Legislative Digest Vol. 5 No. 1, Janaury 2010
government. And yet the MDGs are states’ and
local governments’ responsibilities. That is not
only where they would be achieved, but where
investments need to be made and sustained.
So, it is much more complex in trying to
achieve them; it is not as though if we just
spend the debt relief or spend some money we
will get them, No! But, I think if we can en-
hance that and scale up what has happened
over the last three years when the three tiers
have come together, under an initiative we put
in place to leverage funding, we can reach the
MDGs.
How are the MDGs funded?
The MDGs office money comes from debt relief
gain. What that means is that when we got the debt
relief, we made a saving. It is not money that was
given to us in touch and feel. It is a saving that we
made. So instead of just sort of melting into the
budget, we decided that let us put it as a line item: set
it aside in a virtual poverty fund and dedicate it
towards MDGs related events that will increase and
leverage our ability to get the MDGs, and so it comes
totally from that. We save about a billion dollars a
year, where we would have been paying off in interest
and others, but of that $1bn, 75% of it is what the
Federal Government owed, the 25% is what the states
owed.
How do you spend the funds for the projects?
What is important is first, the monies we are
talking about go through an appropriation at the
Federal level. Secondly, we use our ministries, depart-
ments and agencies as the vehicle for implementation,
so this office doesn’t implement per se, there is an
exception and I will explain that later. Because, that is
part of the challenges we have faced in the last four
years. What is very clear here is that, when you have
an entity that is responsible for specific objectives it is
important not to go and do it for them. It is important
to try to leverage and ensure that your money is used
to influence and to fast track and to take towards that
object and the deliverables that we want.
What can you point out, precisely as the main
achievement of your agency so far?
I think the major one is when I look at Goal 8 and
it says, ‘partnership’ and we think straight away
developed and developing country; for me, the success
is the partnership in Nigeria between the three tiers of
government, particularly the Federal and the States,
that is one big achievement. Not only had government
are part of this and are implementing MDG related
programmes, they have also brought 50% to the table.
So the debt relief has leveraged another 50% on a
conditional grant, which doubled our money in that
case. So that to me is a big achievement. I think the
other achievement is that people are holding govern-
ment and certainly holding us accountable for achiev-
ing the MDG.
How is the relationship between your office
and the National Assembly?
When we look at the partnership and success
between the Federal and State, I’ll also say another
partnership that this office had worked hard at and
have had a measure of success is between us and the
executive and the legislative. I mean I have two com-
mittees, the House Committee on the MDGs and the
Senate Ad-Hoc Committee on MDGs; and both we
work very well. In fact, House Committee on MDGs is
chairing the African Parliamentary group; the only
parliament that has an MDG resource centre within
the parliament; so we have a lot of credit to what is
being able to partner and to help legislatures under-
stand development, to help us appropriate more.
These are some of the successes, I think we are
eventually finding the reason why we should come
together to work with one objective and we can make
it work.
What of partnership with the private sector?
When we talk about the poverty goal, it’s really
about the economy, and the economy is much about
the private sector. Without the private sector being the
I n t e r v i e w
Continued from page 15
Continued on next page
The 8 Goals
Goal 1: Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger
Goal 2: Achieve universal primary education
Goal 3: Promote gender equality and empower women
Goal 4: Reduce child mortality
Goal 5: Improve maternal health
Goal 6: Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria,and other diseases
Goal 7: Ensure environmental sustainability
Goal 8: Develop a global partnership for development
17Legislative Digest Vol. 5 No. 1, Janaury 2010
engine of growth, we are not going to get anywhere,
but we have to have growth with equity, we have to
have growth that means something to the poor man.
Recently we have been speaking with the private
sector to see how can they come in and manage
better some of the investments that we want to make
in areas that have economic activities; agriculture, for
example. How do they put in place facilities that are
available to grow that sector and to make it available
at the local level? How do we really think about 774
local governments as economic centres? Not just
where poor people live, but that we invest to make
that work. To claim that you are going to reach every
Nigerian in every nook and cranny of this country is
really not economically viable. What is viable, is to
give them an opportunity to come to these economic
centres and make a living .
How much has been spent on MDGs since the
programme started?
What we had appropriated over the last four years
started from a hundred billion naira in 2006. Thereaf-
ter, about N110billion every year including 2009.
Expenditure in the beginning was extremely slow; in
fact we have to return some of those resources. Over
the period, about N430 billion that we receive, we can
say about two-third, just about 75% had been ex-
pended. We’ve got a monitoring and evaluation report
on 2006 and 2007. The story there is really one of the
challenges we had, so when you look at it from
hindsight, those lessons are what if somebody was to
look at it from the media will say ok, but will also read
it with the kind of strategy that we used to remedy
what the downside was in the reporting of 2006 and
2007, because we are already in 2010 now. We are
trying to get the Monitoring and Evaluation of 2008
and 2009 which will tell a much better story. But
what 06 and 07 was is really shows you the chal-
lenges that we had, and some of the failing of the
system then and what we’ve done now is to say we’ve
improved it by having different strategy like the
conditional grants to states but not just going to the
ministry. We no longer do rural electrification; we no
longer do rural water from this level. We do them
within the grant. So, we left a lot of things that were
not working. It’s not like they don’t happen we find a
different vehicle, a sharper vehicle to get to people at
the lower level. So that’s about what we’ve done now,
but we’ve leveraged an additional amount to the states
from the conditional grant. Its two years now that
they’ve been doing 50-50 for us, and that’s an addi-
tional, and I think in both case its probably around
N50billion additional from states towards the MDGs.
We will need a rising scale I suppose so, in 2007. We
started by needing N2 trillion to an average of N4
trillion per annum. Now that’s not Federal expenditure
alone, that’s a collective income that will come from
government, households and government’s three tiers
and some of what the private sector pay, and people as
a household you and I pay to the MDGs from our
pockets without government doing so; there is a
funding gap and that’s why we call the international
community to, and that’s the global compact.
On lighter mood. We are aware that you re-
jected some appointments in the past including
ministerial positions and your association with
activists. What are reasons for those…?
… (Cut) You know, for me, it’s Nigeria first and
anybody who says that he is an activist, if you put
your country first, then you are an activist. I do come
from that kind of a background; I was in the private
sector and then, civil society for education-for-all. I
don’t think it’s a reject of the ministerial appoint-
ment. It is a great honour to be thought of as being
capable of becoming a minister, but I think at that
time a number of things came to play. First, this was a
new assignment which was only just getting rooted
and so to abandon it and do something else, I think is
probably irresponsible. And my commitment really
was to poor people and to make a difference in the
lives of my own fellow Nigerians and that is really what
I live for, that is how can I make a difference, the
quality of my life has been better for that. I saw it that
way. I also saw that ministerial has a lot of burden
upon family life and I think that is something at that
particular time with nine months to go in that particu-
lar administration I was better in the job that I had
and also greatly honoured to be in this job because
this is a privilege. It’s hard work but it’s a privilege.
How often does someone actually get the resources
and opportunity to come and make a difference?
Source: Economic Confidential
(www.economicconfidential.com)
Continued from page 16
I n t e r v i e w
Another partnership that this office had worked hardat and has had a measure of success is between usand the executive and the legislative... We have a lotof credit to what is being able to partner and to help
legislatures understand development, to help usappropriate more.
18Legislative Digest Vol. 5 No. 1, Janaury 2010
F o r t h e R e c o r d s
About 38 media practitioners from the
print and broadcast sectors and
representatives of civil society organi-
sations participated in a one-day
“Capacity Building Workshop on the
NEITI Process for the Media”. The
workshop held at the Lagos Airport
Hotel in Ikeja on Tuesday, December
1, 2009, was organised by the Civil
Society Legislative Advocacy Centre
(CISLAC) with support from Oxfam Novib.
Oxfam Novib, a member of Oxfam
International, is fighting for a just world
without poverty, together with people,
organisations, businesses and govern-
ments. This is usually achieved through
projects and lobby, both at the local and the
international levels, because poverty and
injustice are global problems arising from
unjust economic and political relationships.
Nigeria was the first country to commit
itself to the Extractives Industries Transpar-
ency Initiative (EITI) through the passing of
the Nigerian EITI (NEITI) Act. Civil society
groups were closely involved in the process
and the need for the involvement of the
media to properly understand the NEITI
processes cannot be over-emphasised,
hence the need for capacity building of
media practitioners.
The workshop was part of a series of
activities aimed at empowering the media
community and civil society to better
understand and engage the Nigeria
Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative
(NEITI) processes. Specifically, the
objectives of the workshop were to build
the capacity of Nigerian media practitioners
to engage the NEITI process. This in-
cludes: To enhance the understanding of
media practitioners on the NEITI 2005
Audit Report; and to develop a Media
Action work plan for engaging the NEITI
Process.
The Executive Director of CISLAC, Mr.
Auwal Musa (Rafsanjani), delivered a
welcome address at the workshop while
presentations were made on various topics
by Mr. Sam Odiba, an accountant and
independent consultant; Mr. Edetaen Ojo,
Executive Director of Media Rights Agenda
(MRA); Mr. Weneso Orogun, an Economist
and ThisDay newspaper’s Editor-at-Large;
validated, the media and the people should
be better sensitised on the process. They
suggested that the validation process
should be a truly interactive country
level engagement.
√The participants acknowledged
the duty placed on the media by
section 22 of the 1999 Constitution to
uphold the responsibility and account-
ability of the government for the efficient
and equitable management of the nation’s
resources.
√They noted that the media is critical
for the effectiveness and success of the
NEITI process and committed themselves
to improving their capacity to cover the
process by increasing their knowledge and
understanding of the issues. They also
called for more training and sensitisation
activities for media practitioners, including
editors and media managers.
√The participants called on the media
to be proactive in monitoring the NEITI
process rather than uncritically reporting
statements by government officials. The
media should constantly and consistently
focus attention on the irregularities
identified by the audit reports, in addition to
empowering and mobilising the wider
society to take collective action to bring
about transparency and accountability in
the extractive sector. Greater public
sensitisation activities about the NEITI
should also be undertaken to ensure public
awareness and capacity to monitor the
process.
√They observed that the access to
information regime instituted by the NEITI
Act was in adequate to ensure transpar-
ency in process and called for the urgent
passage of a comprehensive Freedom of
Information Law to enable the media and
the larger society have effective oversight
of the process and other issues of govern-
ance.
Signed:
Auwal Musa Rafsanjani,
Executive Director of CISLAC
Mr. Edetaen Ojo,
Executive Director of Media Rights Agenda
(MRA)
CapacityBuilding on theNEITI Processfor the Media
Ms Faith Nwadishi, National Coordinator of
Publish What You Pay (PWYP) Nigeria and
Executive Director of Immalah Foundation.
Following the presentations and
discussions at the meeting, the participants
thereby adopted the following communiqué:
√Participants noted that Nigeria had
received a lot of commendations for being
the first country in Africa to institutionalise
the EITI process by legislation, but
observed that despite the progress made in
the formal processes, it had not translated
into significant improvements in the lives of
the people because of imperfections in the
implementation of the EITI framework.
√Participants expressed concern about
the lack of implementation of the recom-
mendations of the 1999 to 2004 and the
2005 audit reports of the oil and gas sector
commissioned by NEITI.
√They suggested that if the process
audits being commissioned by the NEITI
Secretariat are to make any difference,
NEITI should “name and shame” as well as
apply the sanctions stipulated in the NEITI
on companies, government agencies and
officials that refuse to cooperate in the
audit processes or that have been indicted
in the audit reports.
√The participants expressed serious
concern about the lack of capacity on the
part of government regulatory agencies
such as the Department for Petroleum
Resources (DPR), including lack of
appropriate equipment, absence of
technically competent and skilled person-
nel, to monitor extractive industry compa-
nies and called on the government to take
urgent steps to remedy the situation.
√They observed that for Nigeria to be
19Legislative Digest Vol. 5 No. 1, Janaury 2010
A one-day validation meeting for CSOs on
the 2005 NEITI Audit report on the oil
and gas sector organised by the Civil Soci-
ety Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC),
with support from Oxfam Novib, held at Bol-
ton White Hotel, Abuja, on December 11,
2009.
The event, attended by more than 20 civil
society actors working on transparency in the
extractive industries, the media and other
stakeholders, was led by a presentation en-
titled, “The 2005 NEITI Oil and gas audit re-
port: Matters arising”, by Dr. Sofiri Joab-
Peterside, Associate Research Fellow and
Acting Executive Director, Centre for Ad-
vanced Social science (CASS), Port
Harcourt.
Mr. Auwal Musa Rafsanjani, Executive Di-
rector of CISLAC, in a message to the occa-
sion, said the event was designed to attract
CSOs views on the most recent NEITI audit
report. He was represented by Ms. Naomi
Goyo, a Programme Officer with CISLAC.
OBSERVATIONS
After exhaustive discussion on the analy-
sis, questions, comments and comparison
with the 1999–2004 NEITI audit report, par-
ticipants made the following observations:
1. There is no serious effort on the side
of government to correct the loopholes dis-
covered by the auditors in the 1999 – 2004
report;
2. The oil and gas sector, as reported
in the 2005 audit report, witnessed corrup-
tion, inadequate manpower, and reliance on
foreign technologies;
3. Certain officials in the DPR and
NNPC continue to frustrate government ef-
forts to ensure the success of the Turn Around
Maintenance (TAM) contracts of the country’s
four refineries;
4. The CSOs working on transparency
and accountability in the extractive industries
do not have requisite skills to properly over-
sight the sector;
5. Discrepancies in the information col-
lated by relevant government agencies in the
sector continue to exist, even as such agen-
cies lack necessary legal and technical skills
to report on the sector;
6. There is no adequate information on
the financial commitment of the NEITI secre-
tariat to cooperate with the CSOs in its ac-
tivities;
7. Just like in the 1999-2004 audit re-
port, government agencies continue to rely
on extractive companies to provide informa-
tion on their operations;
8. In spite of the ongoing road show by
the NEITI secretariat on the extractive indus-
tries, most of the people do not understand
the value of the audit reports because they
are too technical.
RECOMMENDATIONS
Participants who expressed frustration
with the situation in the country’s oil and gas
sector, made the following recommendations
if the government must meet the requirement
for an EITI compliant country.
1. The NEITI should, without further de-
lay, give out contract for the audit of the 2006,
2007 and 2008 operations of the oil and gas
sector. This should be concluded before the
EITI validation exercise in March 2010, while
their outcomes should be simplified and mas-
sively circulated.
2. Government should urgently enforce
remediation in all the lapses recorded in the
1999-2004 and 2005 audit reports; expose
all officials involved in corrupt practices and
sanction them accordingly.
3. The CSOs should intensify campaign
for funding to enable them get necessary
skills to oversight the physical, financial and
process involvement of both extractive com-
panies and government agencies.
4. There is the need for such govern-
ment agencies as Federal Inland Revenue
Service (FIRS), Office of the Accountant-
General of the Federation and DPR, to har-
monise their functions towards effective and
efficient performance and reliable exchange
of information.
5. The NEITI secretariat should ensure
that the CSOs representative on the National
Stakeholders’ Working Group (NSWG) is
elected by organisations working on trans-
parency in the extractive industries. This will
ensure independent monitoring of the sector
by CSOs, without pressure from government
officials. This would be calling for the review
of the NEITI Act.
6. The NEITI secretariat should make
public its budgetary commitment to its en-
gagement with the CSOs. This will encour-
age the CSOs to have greater confidence in
the process and promote openness in the
engagement as well as increase their capac-
ity to participate in the NEITI processes.
7. The NEITI secretariat and CSOs
should embark on immediate simplification,
translation into local languages and massive
circulation of the audit reports and other proc-
esses in the sector. This will raise public
awareness, create ownership of the process
by extractive communities and other
stakeholders and increase openness on the
sector.
CONCLUSION
Participants commended CISLAC and
Oxfam-Novib for the forum, and called for
more of regular consultations on the process
to make both the government and extractive
industries live up to expectation.
Signed:
Auwal Musa Rafsanjani,
Executive Director of CISLAC
Faith Nwadishi
Chairperson
Publish What You Pay, Nigeria
Communiqué Issued at One-day ValidationMeeting For CSOs Analysis Report on theNEITI 2005 Oil And Gas Audit Report
F o r t h e R e c o r d s
20Legislative Digest Vol. 5 No. 1, Janaury 2010
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