House to engage MDGs on economy direction

The House of Representative is set to commence debate on the diversification of the nation’s economy next week.

Speaker, Yakubu Dogara, who announced this, on Thursday, at its plenary, said that the debate was to be kick start with the critical sectors such as agriculture, finance, solid minerals, information and industry, trade and investment taking their turn from Tuesday next week each day.

He said that Ministers of various ministries would be subjected to questions from members of the parliament on the diversification plan arrangements of the present administration and the direct benefit of the administration’s mantra to Nigeria.

Doraga explained that the move by the House to obtain the working arrangement of various ministries and parastatals was to avail the law-makers the frame work and policy direction of the government, which would be used as a catalyst for their oversight.

According to the Speaker, the Minister of Agriculture, Chief Audu Ogbe, is to appear before the House on Tuesday, next week, while the law-makers had been directed to arm themselves with relevant questions for the ministers.

He said the sectorial debate on the economy was to enable the lawmaker ascertain the state of the Nigerian economy, so as to proffer solutions to them.

The House, he maintained would designate specific legislative setting to discuss on various problems facing the nation, adding that the legislative initiative was to address national issues that would lead to the crafting of new laws or amending the existing ones, as well as generating recommendations on how to address some of the teething problems.

While appealing to all committee chairmen to arm themselves with relevant question and suggestion in readiness for the exercise next week, Dogara also charged them to appreciate the sensitivity of their mandate and rise to the occasion towards ensuring that they justified the enormous task before them.