Nigeria has made substantial progress in 20 years of democracy – Lawan
President of the Senate, Senator Ahmad Lawan, said on Thursday that Nigeria has made significant progress over the last 20 years since the country’s return to democratic rule in 1999.
Lawan stated this in a speech delivered at the 17th edition of the Daily Trust Dialogue with the theme: “20 years of democracy in Nigeria: Strengths, weaknesses and opportunities” which held in Abuja.
The Senate President, who was the special guest of honour at the event, was represented by the Deputy Chief Whip of the Senate, Senator Aliyu Abdullahi (APC/Niger North).
Lawan said that “representation, appropriation and legislation are critical to good governance. These virtues are enshrined in a democratic set up, which we (Nigerians) have experienced in the last 20 years.”
In his assessment of Nigeria’s democratic journey so far, the Senate President added further “Nigeria has made substantial progress on all counts in the evolution of our nation, via the democratic dispensation. We have been steady, determined and forward-looking.
“We have developed it to the point where we can look no other way, other than the democratic way. What we now have to do as we have been doing in the National Assembly are ways of perfecting the system.
“The point has been severally made that there is no perfect democracy anywhere in the world, but the hallmark of a good democracy is the ability to develop its processes and procedures.”
Identifying the tools of democracy as the constitution, political parties and the electioneering process, Lawan noted that “any democracy that seeks to grow must ensure that these sectors work seamlessly.
“The legislature is in tune with this realization and has set in motion machineries for the timely passage of the Electoral Reform Amendment Bill and the bill for the amendment of the 1999 Constitution.
“We have proposed these bills for amendments based on the limitations we realized from implementing them. In reviewing them, therefore, the greater goal of service to fatherland and the overall good of the people are our (National Assembly’s) guiding principles.”
The Senate President while harping on the need to strengthen the country’s economy said the National Assembly passed legislations toward increasing Nigeria’s revenue base in addition to ensuring appropriate application.
He identified some of the bills as the Deep Offshore and Inland Basin Production Sharing Contracts Act, 2004 (Amendment Bill, 2019) and the Finance Bill, 2019, which was passed on November 21, 2019, that amended seven existing tax and fiscal policy laws.
Others, he said are the Public Procurement Act 2007 (Amendment) Bills, 2019) which seeks to strengthen the operational capacity of the Procurement Act, as an important reform and anti-corruption initiative.
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Among the dignitaries who attended the event are the former Vice President of Nigeria, Mohammed Namadi Sambo, who chaired the occasion; Governor of Ekiti state and Chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum, Kayode Fayemi and immediate Chairman of the All Progressive Congress (APC), Chief John Oyegun.
Others are Senator Kashim Shettima, chairman, Senate Committee on Interior and former Governor of Borno state and Rep. Lynda Ikpeazu, chairman, House Committee on Maritime Safety, Education and Administration.
