Assembly Financial Autonomy: Senate President Promises To Approach Governors’ Forum

President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, has promised to take the financial autonomy for houses of assembly to the Governors’ Forum.

Lawan made the promise in a meeting with speakers of houses of assembly who came on a courtesy visit.

The Senate President in a statement by his Special Adviser on Media, Ola Awoniyi, encouraged the speakers at the state houses of assembly to have cordial working relationship with their respective executives without necessarily compromising their independence.

He called for synergy among the National Assembly and houses of assembly in the discharge of their statutory responsibilities.

Lawan said the assemblies at both state and national levels should continue to exchange ideas on how to support lawmaking.

He said,  “We should have more and deeper frequent engagements between the National Assembly and the houses of assembly.

“We need to be talking; we need to be engaging ourselves because there are certain things that we have to do together, especially the constitutional amendment in which National Assembly takes the lead.

“But the state houses of assembly will continue to have to play their roles as well, we should not wait to be thirsty before we dig a well and we should always be proactive.”

Lawan further said that there were certain legislation that required some domestication or replication at the state level.

“This is because even if we implement them at the national level and the states have not bought into it, it is going to have very limited success,” he said.

 “Without allowing yourselves to be subjugated, you still must ensure that you work together with the executives’ arm of government in your states to produce legislation that will change the lives of the people.”

Responding to a request for the senate president intervention with regards to the financial autonomy of the state legislature, Lawan assured them that he would approach the matter on their behalf through the Governors’ Forum.

Spokesman for the delegation, Sheriff Oborevwori, who is the Speaker of Delta House of Assembly, expressed concerns that the state executive had yet to give effect to the issue of the financial autonomy of the state legislature.

Oborevwori urged the senate president to help them take the issue up with the president for possible issuance of executive order.

Lawan, however, said that the question of executive order would not be necessary because it is a constitutional matter which should be complied with by the state authorities.

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