Electing new leadership of the Ninth National Assembly – TheNigerialawyer

Eze Onyekpere

The legislature is established as an institution to make laws
for the peace, order and good government of society. It is one of
the three arms of government at the federal, state and local
government levels. At the federal level, we have the National
Assembly consisting of a Senate and a House of Representatives
while states have Houses of Assembly. Councillors constitute the
legislative arm of the local government system. Beyond legislation,
the legislators are expected to play roles related to
representation of their constituencies, oversight over executive
function, leading to checks and balances between it and other arms
of government.

It is a fundamental aphorism that the legislature is the hub of
democracy; where there is no legislature, there is no democracy. It
is the assembly of the people’s representatives. It is the
difference between elected governments and our previous experience
with military dictatorships. During military dictatorships, the
junta being the executive also usurped legislative functions in the
Armed Forces Ruling Council or in the Supreme Military Council. The
judiciary was allowed to exist, although it might blow muted
trumpets. By the act of inter alia separating executive and
legislative powers as well as allowing the judiciary to flourish, a
democracy is created and entrenched. Therefore, Nigerians must work
for the independence and jealously guard the separation of powers
which ensures the functioning of a vibrant legislature at all
levels of government.

There is an inbuilt constitutional tension between the executive
and the legislature in a presidential democratic system of
government. The President is the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed
Forces and it is said that virtually everything stops at his table.
He has a larger than life image and is supposed to be an action man
who makes things happen. However, the executive led by the
President cannot spend public resources without legislative
approval. Laws are debated and approved by the legislature but need
presidential assent to become law and in the event the president
vetoes a bill, the legislature can override the veto by using the
requisite constitutional majority, thereby dispensing the need for
presidential assent. All these are anchored on the doctrine of
separation of powers which recognises the need to separate the
various functions of governance and allot them to different
institutions and persons. This is to avoid concentration of powers
in one person or institution which will lead to authoritarianism,
dictatorship and misrule.

However, at a recent meeting with the leadership of the National
Assembly, President Muhammadu Buhari was reported to have stated
that the principal task of the lawmakers is to cooperate with the
Executive so that together, they can fashion policies that will
lift our people out of poverty and out of illiteracy. While there
is a need for harmony in the executive legislature relations- hip
for the nation to witness progress, economic growth and
development, there should be no suggestion that Nigeria needs a
rubber stamp legislature that simply endorses every executive
position. Such a legislature would be failing in its constitutional
duties and would not be worth the votes cast for its members by the
electorate. Constitutionally, the legislature is the first arm of
government created by Section 4 of the Constitution before a
provision is made in Section 5 for the President and executive
functionaries. It is the largest body of elected officials in any
government.

Leadership is essential in all facets of life as it is the
driver and motivator of change, actions and omissions for the
public good. It articulates organisational challenges and issues
with a view to turning them into action points for progress and
development. Thus, the leadership of the National Assembly will be
pivotal in fulfilling and performing its constitutional duties. The
1999 Constitution as amended, being the fundamental law of the
land, simply states in Section 50 that the President and Deputy
President of the Senate and the Speaker and Deputy Speaker of the
House of Representatives respectively, shall be elected by members
of the House from among themselves. Although it is standard
parliamentary practice for the leadership of a legislature to come
from the majority party in parliament, the constitution was silent
on this requirement as it left it to the political actors and
members of the legislature to resolve.

It is against this background that Nigerians should approach,
analyse and respond the struggle for the leadership of the National
Assembly. Therefore, the attempt by a section of the ruling All
Progressives Congress to foist some anointed candidates, especially
to the office of the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the
House of Representatives suggests an attempt to create a supine
legislature that will bow to the wishes of the executive in all
matters. Even when some members of party and federal legislators
complained, they were simply threatened to either conform or be
expelled. This is not good for democracy especially at a time when
the executive is becoming domineering and overbearing on other arms
of government. If we recall the cavalier process and approach that
led to the ouster of Chief Justice Walter Onnoghen and the failed
prosecution of Bukola Saraki for emerging Senate President contrary
to the wish of some of his party members, then every right-thinking
Nigerian should oppose the emergence of these anointed
candidates.

There is nothing wrong with zoning offices by a ruling party.
But this should stop at, for instance, zoning the office of the
Senate President to the North-East geopolitical zone. Thereafter,
the senators from that zone should be allowed to use their freewill
to narrow down on who should lead them. Leadership of the
legislature should not be imposed by outside forces, who seem to
have an interest contrary to the interest of the generality of
Nigerians or whose interest is only for their narrow selfish
political interest which is contrary to the public good. Also, the
attempt to use a voting system in electing the leadership of the
legislature which would not allow legislators to freely express
their franchise stands condemned. A situation where a few persons
illegally and brazenly seek to impose a leadership on the
legislature, with a threat to victimise legislators who resist the
imposition cannot be described as democratic. Those who feel called
upon to describe themselves as leaders of a political party and
dish out orders without carrying the people along should honestly
and meticulously allow their instructions to be tested in a free
and fair environment, devoid of threats and intimidation. This
would provide a balanced field for these instructions to be tested
with the popular vote.

It is therefore time for our elected representatives to stand up
as men and women who are not slaves and who fear no gods made with
the feet of clay, to declare their full membership of the human
family by living their life in dignity and voting according to
their conscience. To our dear federal lawmakers, refuse to be cowed
and intimidated; resist bullies, dictators and godfathers. Send a
clear message that you shall work for the Nigerian people and not
for cabals and those who have held Nigeria down.

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