Delta Stste House of Assembly on Tuesday, April 30, 2019 received an Executive Bill seeking to amend the 2015 law establishing the Delta State Capital Territory Development Agency, DSCTDA.
Details of the Bill were not known until Wednesday, May 2, 2019 when it was listed on the Order Paper for the day’s plenary.
The Majority Leader of the House, Honourable Tim Owhefere, rose to move a motion for the suspension of Rule 12, Orders 77, 78 and 79 to enable the House pass the Bill without going through the normal legislative process.
Section 8(b) of the principal law provides for a tenure of 5 years for members of the Board of the DSCTDA and the intended amendment was to reduce the number of years to 4.
However, the House hurriedly considered the Bill without recourse to the principal law, and by so doing wrongly amended section 10(b) of the principal law which provides for the establishment of the Department of Investment and Business Promotion in the Head Office of the Agency, giving the section the same provision contained in section 8(b) of the principal law.
This serious error casts doubt in the quality of legislations that emanate from the House as neither the Honourable members, the Clerk of the House, nor the legislative staff could detect the grave mistake.
This calls for greater dedication and thoroughness to the very sensitive legislative duty so that the Bills passed by the House would be unquestionable by any authority.
Attempts to get the Majority Leader to comment on the issue were unsuccessful as he did not pick the calls put across to him by our reporter.
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