The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas has said henceforth, the green chamber would prioritise “Speaking with the people” as against only “Speaking for the people and meet twice every year with the people.
Abbas disclosed this on Saturday at a live interactive session with Nigerians, the first of its kind in the history of the National Assembly.
At the event, televised live on two national televisions – NTA and Channels TV – Abbas led the leadership and some key members of the House to inform the public on the activities of the parliament from January to December.
The speaker engaged the citizens in company with the Deputy Speaker Benjamin Kalu; Majority Leader, Julius Ihonvbere; Deputy Majority Leader, Abdullahi Ibrahim Halims; Minority Leader, Kingsley Chinda; Chairperson, Commonwealth Women Parliamentarian (CWP), Zainab Gimba, and Chairman, House Committee on Healthcare Institutions, Patrick Umoh.
While the legislative year of the National Assembly starts in June, Speaker Abbas noted that the interaction was strategic in December as it marks the first half of the current legislative year. He said the public engagement will continue.
The speaker stated that the ‘People’s House’ took the remarkable step to further open up the parliament to the people.
The Speaker-led panel of the House also answered sundry questions from the audience. The questions bothered on economy, security, education, health, youths, and people living with disabilities, among others.
While answering some questions, the Speaker disclosed that 11 percent of the bills sponsored by members of the House in 2024 were on infrastructure.
He, however, noted the limits of the legislature concerning infrastructure. “Implementation (by the Executive) could be another problem,” he said.
Speaker Abbas also stressed the need for the government to shore up revenue.
“For us to expand our infrastructure, we need to expand our revenue base. That is the number one area where we must work. Unless we have enough revenue, we cannot be able to build our infrastructure the way we want,” he stated.
On plans to continue the live citizens’ engagement, Speaker Abbas declared that the interaction will hold biannually, with the next coming up in June 2025 when the National Assembly will conclude the current legislative year.
The Speaker recalled how he promised the Nigerian youth at an engagement in July that the House would engage with them twice a year, a promise which has been fulfilled through the two separate town halls held on July 31 and December 16, 2024, respectively.
He said: “We delivered that promise less than a week ago. I want to assure Nigerians that this kind of engagement will be taking place twice in a year.”
Members of the panel also informed Nigerians how the House has introduced sign language during the plenary to communicate the proceedings of the House to more Nigerians, especially those with hearing difficulties.
While disclosing plans for youth and gender-friendly budgets, the lawmakers assured the audience of more engagements with all stakeholders.
In a remark, former Speaker Etteh noted that the House has achieved a lot within the last 18 months, saying such achievements should be communicated to Nigerians, especially those in rural communities, in their local languages.
She also encouraged the House to act quickly on its already committed resolve to have more women in governance and leadership positions through the instrument of the law.
For his part, ex-Speaker Dogara, argued that there was the need to have more engagements with the citizens to hear their yearnings and aspirations rather than just speaking for them.
Dogara noted that the citizens remain the cornerstone of democracy, which is why getting their inputs in legislative activities was crucial to the sustain of representation.
