2nd November, 2015
Eromosele Ebhomele
@selemele2
There was palpable anxiety at the Lagos State House of Assembly on Monday over which lawmaker would head any of the 32 committees listed during plenary.
The chairmen of the committees are expected to be announced on Tuesday according to sources within the House.
The number of the committees have increased by eight compared with previous committees in past sessions of the Assembly. The last Assembly had a total of 24 committees.
This time, the committees have been increased to make them go round.
As against previous sessions when the House had senior members as chairmen of committees with new members as vice chairmen, both old and new members will chair committees this time.
The apprehension now concerns the attractive committees popularly referred to as ‘juicy’.
While some of the lawmakers are believed to have known what committees they would be taking charge of as a result of special considerations like being ranking members of the House, other lawmakers told P.M.NEWS that they are only waiting for the final announcement of the chairmen.
In a motion titled ‘Amendment of the Standing Committees of the Lagos State House of Assembly’, presented on the floor of the House, the Majority Leader, Sanai Agunbiade, noted that “pursuant to the House resolution dated Tuesday, June 16, 2015,” the House set up an ad-hoc committee with a mandate to break up the standing committees of the House as contained in the Business Rules and Standing Orders of the House into smaller units.
He added that this was to enhance efficiency and review the Business, Rules and Standing Orders of the House of Assembly to amend inherent errors.
He further noted that shortly after the ad-hoc committee was set up, Governor Akinwunmi Ambode announced changes to the composition, duties and nomenclature of some ministries, departments and agencies, MDAs, of the state.
The newly constituted committees are: Committees on Selection; Business, Rules and Standing Orders; Ethics, Protocol and Privilege; Public Accounts (State); Public Accounts (Local Government); Agriculture; House Services; Economic Planning and Budget; Education; Science and Technology; the Environment.
Others are: Committees on Establishment, Training and Pension; Energy and Mineral Resources; Waterfront Infrastructure Development; Physical Planning and Urban Development; Transportation; Commerce, Industries and Cooperatives; Women Affairs, Poverty Alleviation and Job Creation.
The rest are: Works and Infrastructure; Wealth Creation and Employment; Finance; Health; Home Affairs; Tourism, Arts and Culture; Youth and Social Development; Judiciary, Human Rights, Public Petitions and LASIEC; Lands; Housing; Information and Strategy; Central Business Districts; Special Duties and Inter Governmental Relations; and Local Government Administration and Community Affairs.
According to Agunbiade, “this House also realised that the changes in the ministerial responsibilities and nomenclatures of the affected MDAs, will cause consequential changes in the oversight functions of corresponding House committees, different from what is hitherto obtainable.
“The House also recognises that the Ad hoc Committee has carried out the task entrusted to it and has unbundled the twenty four (24) standing committees originally contained in the Business, Rules and Standing Orders of the House to achieve a new committee structure of thirty-two (32).”
He sought and got the House resolution to ratify and include the new standing committees as the new standing committees of the House so that they would have chairmen and be incorporated in the on-going amendment of the business rules.