18 hours ago
3
A former Member of the House of Representatives in the 9th National Assembly, Farah Dagogo, has insisted that the bill for the establishment of the Federal Medical Centre, Bonny, Rivers State, received Senate concurrence in the last National Assembly.
Dr Dagogo’s successor in the House of Representatives and Member representing Degema/Bonny constituency, Hon. Cyril Hart, had erroneously stated, after re-presenting the bill on the floor of the House, that the bill did not receive Senate approval in the 9th Assembly, despite being passed by the House of Representatives.
But refuting the claim in a statement, Dr. Dagogo clarified that the bill followed all legislative steps and was subsequently approved and passed into law by the Senate on Wednesday, January 18th, 2023, for concurrence.
“The business of the National Assembly, whether in the Senate or the House of Representatives, is properly recorded and can easily be verified at any time. Government is a continuum, and as representatives of the people, the whole idea is to pursue policies that would be beneficial to the people at all times.
“It is quite unfortunate and sad when we attempt to rewrite history or events with falsehoods, solely for the purpose of gaining unwarranted praise.
“Contrary to the erroneous statement made by the Member representing Degema/Bonny Constituency in the House of Representatives, Hon. Cyril Hart, that the failure to get Senate concurrence on the Federal Medical Centre bill was the reason the bill was not transmitted to the President for assent, this claim is completely untrue. The Senate actually passed it into law. The statement was made in bad taste and was a woeful attempt to present his predecessor as someone who does not understand the legislative process. A little research would have prevented such an embarrassing statement.”
“The bill for the Federal Medical Centre, Bonny, was the first and one of the flagship bills presented by Farah Dagogo. The bill was passed on the floor of the Senate on Wednesday, January 18th, 2023. This passage was in concurrence with the one earlier passed on the floor of the House of Representatives on Tuesday, March 22nd, 2022. The bill for the creation of the pioneer STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, Mathematics) Polytechnic in Tombia, Rivers State, was also given concurrence after being earlier passed into law by the House of Representatives.
“On the issue of transmission to the President for assent, Hon. Cyril Hart has been in the National Assembly for more than a year and should be conversant with how bills operate. At a certain stage in the process of a bill, especially those already passed into law by both the Senate and the House of Representatives, it becomes the property of the National Assembly.
“As of that period, the National Assembly, through its leadership, is responsible for its transmission to the President,” the statement explained.
READ MORE FROM: NIGERIAN TRIBUNE
