By Sunny Anderson Osiebe
Please let’s know you sir?
My names are Peter OnyedikachukwuNwaoboshi, representing the good people of
Delta North Senatorial District in Delta State.
What is your definition of lawmaking?
I will start by sayingthat Law making is the primary function of a legislator.
They are saddled with the responsibility of to making laws that are beneficial
to the people represented and to see that these laws are implemented by
carrying out oversight functions. It is also to make sure that the laws are for
the benefits of the people of Nigeria and our constituents. The issue of law
making is tasking. Its process is more than just coming together to debate.
There has to be a lot of research work carried out with an understanding of
what is to be achieved by those laws.
I will give you an example.When the
issue of Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) and Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) Act
came up, many people didn't understand that there is a need for its amendment.
You see, you don't understand the impact of the law until it is implemented.
Nobody attached any importance to the CCB law; not even the lawyers until that
time when the senate President was charged for false declaration of assets.Some
of us who are law makers now had to focus our attention on that law, and to
know what exactly it is that the law is all about.
We had never had a reason to
practice it before now, so it came to our attention. We had to revisit our
constitution, read through the CCT Act and found out that there was a problem with
his trial; that it was politically motivated. The question now arose that
whether he should be allowed to go through such politically motivated trial and
some of us said no. If the judge insisted on applying the criminal justice in
giving judgment in this case as he was always heard quoting, it means that it
is a full court and as such should be under the judiciary and not under the
control of the executive. They were denying it though but it was very glaring
because even if you look at their sign board you will see "presidency,
code of conduct tribunal" which is very wrong. If it's me today it can be
you tomorrow.
So we said the law is not proper, let us amend
the act and people were shouting and saying all sort of things. But some of us
who were convinced especially those of us who are lawyers said no; it is not
proper. As a lawyer there are three rulesof interpreting an act; golden rule,
literally rule and the mischief rule. So what was the mischief that they were
trying to cure? Was it meant for political witch hunting? Or, to make sure that
there are code of conduct for people who are working for the government? It
must be impartial; it has to be moved from the executive to the judiciary. If
it is a full court why connect it to the executive rather than the judiciary?
Such a court can be influenced by the instructions of the executive and as such
Justice will not be certain at all times. So, these are the challenges of lawmaking;
when the laws are being implemented. That is why there is always provision to amend
these laws. We are not perfect; we make these laws and amend where the need
arises.
What are the functions of the senate committee on Niger
Delta Affairs?
The major function of the legislator is in oversight, whether the laws made for
the constituents are carried out and obeyed. Now if you say Chairman of Niger
Delta Affairs, there are guiding laws for the body and under these laws, there
are functions; things that are supposed to be done. We oversight them to make
sure that what they are doing is in line with the act. The agencies we
oversight submit their budget to the National Assembly, we look at it, make
appropriation for them and make sure that in performing their functions they
follow the plan of the budget. For instance, if there is a budget for a hundred
houses and we did not see it, we question that; where is the money appropriated
for the houses?
As the chairman of the committee, I monitor their activities; to be sure they
are doing the right thing and report my findings to the senate.
What is your expectation on the newly
inaugurated board of the NDDC?
Their names were brought, the senate referred them to us and they were screened
under my leadership here.We looked at their qualifications and moral characters
and reverted back to the senate that we found a number of them qualified and
others not qualified for the job.The senate accepted our report, accepted the
ones we approved of and rejected the ones we did not approve of. So, we were
able to get them approved for the job.It then means that we must make sure they
work in line with the act and in accordance with the laws guiding the NDDC. We
are watching them, if we see anything wrong we will not hesitate to bring them
to book, to come and account for their actions.
What is your agenda for the people of
Delta North senatorial district?
National Assembly makes laws for the good governance of the country. The agenda
must have positive influence on the general public. But if you say what I have
for them, to promote their interest, to make sure they benefit from the
democratic dividends, that's another issue. I want to be sure the voices of my
people are heard in the National Assembly. I know that my people are peace
loving people, they are not selfish but they are not weak. For instance, there
is an amnesty program going on for the oil producing areas and my people are
not benefiting because we are non-violent and I can't allow it to continue.
We have the highest gas reserve not
in Nigeria but in the whole of Africa which is in Ndokwa. Aside that, they are
generating light from there into the national grid but we are not complaining
and we are not fighting. We have many oil wells there; we are not fighting, and
we are not quarreling. We allow them come in peacefully to explore and carry
the oil away. But they give us stipends and crumbs from the master's table. The
whole of Delta north is oil producing; we have oil in Anyiocha, we have in Oshimili
South and Oshimili North and we have in Eka.There are many other areas where
exploration is yet to commence yet you are not allowing them to partake in the
amnesty program because we are not violent.
I won't allow that; I will continue to shout at the top of my voice.
Am happy that one of the oil
companies have realized and approved an empowerment program, to train the people
and bring them for employment. That is the first step, at least to recognize
that we are an oil producing area and as such, are supposed to be treated like
other communities that produce oil too. Nobody has the monopoly of violence. They
are now conscious and the amnesty office now knows that our people must be
taken care of just like other oil producing communities.
Secondly, in NDDC, my people also need to enjoy equal right as other NDDC
communities are enjoying.My interest there is to benefit the people.
Very soon we will bring up the issue of the massacre of the Asaba people too;
it is not a dead issue. During the civil war, the whole men in the town were
summoned.It was said that there was a town meeting and they all came out only
for them all to be killed. That is genocide yet nobody talked about it; even
the federal government has not even said sorry, we made a mistake, we did not
authorize soldiers to do what they did but instead they kept quiet on the
issue. I will bring it up, I will use my position to bring development to my
people, to fight for their right, for their voices to be heard as citizens of
this country, and they must never be deprived of their right.
Before now, the Niger Delta region was relatively calm, what
do you think is responsible for the pipeline bombing in the region?
This Niger Delta issue is like this; he who plays the piper dictates the tune.
Militarization of the Niger Delta region will not solve the problem. Look at
what happened during the election in Rivers State.With all the military men and
women deployed there, killings still took place.They were shooting and the people
were shooting too. The military man has no monopoly; he is human just like the
people are. "Their uniform na clothe o, na tailor dey sew am". They
will kill the people but the people will also kill them.You cannot kill a
people and think they will fold their arms; you cannot. They will kill them
too, and the consequences will be too much.
The NDDC is assumed to be under-funded
compared to the level of under-development in oil producing states, how do you
intend to use your office to increase its funding?
Federal government owes them about nine hundred and ninety billion naira as at
today and the oil companies owe them eight hundred and thirty six million
dollars. I have improved the finances of the NDDC from the time I became chairman
of the committee through my interactions with the oil companies.The records are
there. I brought the oil companies here, I read the law to them and made them
know they must comply; I did it with my committee members. They cannot disobey
the laws of their country so they cannot come to Nigeria and disobey our laws,
we will not take it from them, and if they cannot obey the laws of this country
they should pack and go. Today the NDDC are here to tell that their revenue
improved substantially.Weintend to continue like that. We have also engaged the
accountant general of the federation; we have called the permanent secretary,
ministry of finance, to tell them they have to start paying.
The presidency recently set up a
committee on electoral reform, what areas would you suggest to the committee to
lay more emphasis on?
What happened in Rivers State? why
did the police take about twenty five thousand personnel? Was there a declaration
of war? Are they genuine? Former PresidentGoodluck Jonathan can move round the
world today and conveniently talk about elections and people will listen. Not
when a legislative election in a small state is attracting "moving in with the federal might". Who is the federal
might, is it not Nigerians? The money used to fund that "federal might"
is it not from the same Niger Delta? Yet they have the guts to say to the
Nigerian people that they have come with federal might. Look, I don't believe
in talks;let’s conduct free and fair elections. Former President Goodluck
Jonathan conducted elections in this country and PDP lost, yet he allowed it.
Edo, Anambra and so on, he allowed for the wishes of the people to prevail.He lost
and conceded.
Tell us more about the bills and motions
you have presented on the floor of the senate so far?
I have sponsored five bills on the floor but the motions are many I cannot
count. I sponsored the bill for an Act to amend Code of Conduct Bureau and the
Tribunal Act, CAP, C15, LFN, 2004 (dated 22nd December, 2015). It is a bill meant
to protect all so that one person does not wake up one morning and give
directions for this person or that person to be jailed for one reason or the
other without a proper trial. Even if the person later goes to the court of
appeal for a redress the damage would have been done already. Take for instance;
the Supreme Court said that two forms a quorum. At the yearly annual lecture
held with more than twenty five senior advocates, the President,Nigeria Bar
Association, Professors of law and Justice of the court of appeal in
attendance, I said to them, “it is very good when intellectuals come together
and speak very well and the audience clap. But when you finish speaking, how
does it affect the life of an ordinary man on the street?
With these legal heavy weights
seated here today, I have two questions to ask; where the Supreme Court says
that two forms a quorum, that two members of the panel forms a quorum in a
case, where there is a disagreement between the two, which one is the judgment
of the court? There was silence in the whole hall, nobody could answer the
question yet this is a pronouncement by the Supreme Court. Then I asked again,
if the Supreme Court says that code of conduct tribunal can give judgment like
other courts, is it right for that code of conduct to remain in the hands of
the executive in context of the principles of separation of power? I was
talking of the Supreme Court judgment in the case of senate presidentBukolaSaraki
versus the federal government of Nigeria. Nobody could answer me.The chairman
of the Nigerian bar association stood up and said they should please take their
refreshments because the questions were too strong and should serve as foods
for thought. They couldn't answer me. It is not a controversial issue, it's
very straight forward, and it’s just that Nigerians are beclouded; they don't
want to say the truth in a matter. We did not say Saraki should not be tried or
convicted but why should the code of conduct have only two as a quorum and not
three whereas in the case of an appeal court we have three and five, the
Supreme Court five, seven, so why?
What has been your challenge so far as a
federal law maker?
The greatest challenge I would say is that our people has failed to realize
that once you are a senator of the Federal republic of Nigeria, in handling any
issue, you have to put the interest of Nigerians first and foremost because you
are not a senator of APC or PDP. Even though you are from that extraction but
you should speak as a state’s man. You have to look at issues from the point of
view of the average Nigerian not from the point of view of what your political
leaders have told you to go and do. I keep advising and reminding my colleagues
that we are senators of the Federal Republic of Nigeria not senators of APC or
PDP. That is what we have to imbibe, the culture of patriotism, to speak for
the Nigerian people once you are there. Until we purge ourselves of partisan
spirit in handling issues and talk about the Nigerian issue.
This is the challenge I have and
have been advocating about. When the NDDC's budget was brought, twenty two
billion was allocated to amnesty and I told them it was wrong but they were
busy militarizing that area now they realize and brought it up to fifty five
billion meanwhile I was advocating for forty five million then, so who was
wrong then? Let's forget about whether it is an APC man or a PDP man that is
saying the truth, look at the substance of the music, forget about who is
playing the music, the message of the music is what matters. That's the
greatest challenge some of us are facing in this place.
What is your take on the recent raid on
some judges?
First, judges are not immune from criminal investigations;they have not done
well especially in the election tribunals, the court of appeal and some of the
tribunals. Some judges not all have done very badly. The only thing I may say
with the greatest respect, is that the only hope we had as the Supreme Court
has not done so well for the Nigerian people but in spite of one or two
reservations some of us have; the method of carrying out the exercise is what
some of us are not happy about. Why do you go to a judge's house by 2am? What
is the duty of the DSS, why would they be involved?Is that a security issue? If
you have evidence you give it to the police, they will arrest and charge them
to court, and the Nigerian people will clap. Why will you go and raid his house
at night? Or since you have that information, what stops you in the morning for
the police to get a warrant, go and conduct a search in the house? That is how
advanced countries do it, with facts. I reiterate that we are not saying the
judges are immune, in fact some of us have had one experience or the other certain
things we know about, we are growing and there must be acceptable ways of doing
things.
Assess Gov. Okowa`s performance so far?
He is doing very well, taking into cognizance the financial situation of the
country, he is doing very well. I have interacted with him and I know many
people who are put in that position will find it difficult even to remain in
government house, he is doing very well.
SOME BILLS AND MOTIONS SPONSORED BY SENATOR PETER
NWABAOSHI
i. A Bill for an Act to amend the public officers protection Act, LFN, 2004
(2015)-for 2nd reading.
Explanatory memorandum: This Bill seeks to amend the Public officers protection
Act, laws of the federation of Nigeria, 2004, so as to cure the hardship and
injustice occasioned by certain
Provisions of the Act as the Act which was enacted in 1916 was Primarily meant to serve the interest of
colonialists.
ii. A Bill for an Act to Promote and Regulate the Real Estate sector, 2015
(dated 8th December, 2015) -for 2nd reading.
Explanatory memorandum: This Bill seeks to provide a regulatory framework to
regulate and promote the real estate sector and to ensure that sale or lease of
plot, apartment or
building (landed property) as the case may be, is done in transparent Manner,
especially, the protection of consumers in the real estate sector.
iii. A bill for an Act to amend Code of Conduct Bureau and Tribunal Act, CAP,
C15, LFN, 2004 (dated 22nd December, 2015) - already passed.
Explanatory memorandum: This bill seeks to amend the Code of Conduct Bureau and
Tribunal Act, CAP C15, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004 so as to make
certain
provisions of the Act more elaborate and to bring out the clear meaning in the
provisions of the Act.
iv. A Bill for an Act to Repeal Local Government Act (Cap 8, 1976) - 2016
(dated 18th October, 2016).
Explanatory memorandum: This bill seeks to repeal the Local Government Act No.
8 of 1976 as the Act is now moribund and of no value under the present democratic
dispensation.
Motions: i. Urgent need to investigate the activities of Petroleum Equalization
Fund Management Board and to determine its relevance in view of present
government policy on
deregulation of petroleum products.
ii. Difficulty and delay in processing land documents inNigeria
iii. Closure of National Arts Gallery in Abuja.
END.
