Lagosians Challenge Assemblymen On Safety Bill

Professionals who attended a one-day public hearing on a bill for the establishment of safety commission held recently at the Lagos State House of Assembly have challenged the lawmakers to ensure strict enforcement of safety standards in the state.

They also presented memoranda concerning the bill to the lawmakers.

The bill, according to Sanai Agunbiade representing Ikorodu Constituency 1, has the sole aim of ensuring the safety of lives and property in the state.

Agunbiade said the bill, which has 15 sections, would set up a commission that would ensure strict compliance to safety standards.

Lawmaker Avoseh Hodewu, whose committee oversees handling of the bill, said when passed into law, it will regulate the safety activities of organisations and other bodies in the state.

A representative of Safety Association of Nigeria (SAN), Mr. Tokunbo Odebunmi, noted that the bill was silent on its enforcement when it becomes law.

He noted that without enforcement, the commission would be a toothless bulldog.

Ibitoye-Enoch Olu, Head, Joint Disaster Rescue Initiative, advised that the safety commission should be empowered to have a department that would enforce the law when the bill is passed.

He suggested that safety experts from the private sector be employed to ensure standards are met, saying that the experts could be placed under the civil service rules and rank.

A Deputy Superintendent of Police, Peter Ugwumba, of the Legal Section of the State CID, Panti, Yaba, also urged the lawmakers to make provision for law enforcement in the bill.

Ugwumba said the Police, Federal Road Safety Commission, and other stakeholders’ inputs are important for proper enforcement of the law, noting that the Ministry of Justice is also important to the commission.

While some called for the inclusion of clauses that would favour prevention of illness and disasters, others advised that the bill should be made to provide for job security of the director general of the commission.

The Chairman of Nigerian Veterinary Medical Association (NVMA), Dr. Oladapo Collins, posited that since health and safety consist of substantive part of food safety standards, the Ministry of Agriculture should be made part of the commission.

“The ministry which includes the veterinary and other health safety experts should be co-opted,” he added.