An Assembly of non-nationals?

Nigerians are currently reacting to the ‘Control of Infectious Diseases Act’ which grants the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) more administrative powers for forceful vaccinations to limitations on Freedom of association.

The bill which was sponsored by the Speaker, Femi Gbajabiamila, has passed a second reading in the House of Representatives.

Leading the debate, Gbajabiamila said that the NCDC had very little powers to carry out its mandate even though it is a body with great professionals.

Gbajabiamila said the bill sought to empower the NCDC to make it more proactive and not just reactive and function when there is an outbreak.

He said when the bill is signed and becomes law, the NCDC will be empowered to administer necessary vaccines to curb the spread of pandemics.

The lawmaker said that the bill also seeks to make provisions relating to quarantine and make regulations for preventing the introduction and spreading of infectious diseases in Nigeria.

The lawmaker said that the Control of Infectious Diseases bill provided a penalty of between N200, 000 and N5 million for defaulters.

According to Gbajabiamila, the Infectious Diseases bill also seeks to empower the President and the Minister of Health to exercise certain necessary powers at first instance, during any outbreak.

The lawmaker, however, said that at second and third instances, the President would have to seek the approval of the National Assembly.

The speaker urged members to pass the bill for second and third reading and seek concurrence from the Senate before it was sent to the president for assent.

Earlier in the year, Liborous Oshoma, a public affairs commentator asked some poignant questions.

Is it the duty of our national assembly to make laws to compensate criminality and punish those who abide by the rules? Then one might be tempted to ask: if ours is a national assembly or assembly of non-nationals? These questions became pertinent as one hears that the national assembly is proposing a bill to grant amnesty to terrorists and the House of Reps members are buying foreign vehicles in opposition to Nigerian-made. Are these members oblivious of the prevailing situation in Nigeria?

In a country where people can hardly feed with one dollar, that is, 362 naira a day, the members of the house of reps are going to spend about N5 billion buying 400 pieces of 2020 model of Toyota Camry at the cost of N40 per car.

We were informed that the members even rejected the locally manufactured Innoson vehicles; it is obvious we are there to serve them and they are not to serve us. Even the member representing Innoson’s constituency couldn’t insist that all the vehicles be bought from Innoson Motors.

So much for exprit the chop. So, money meant to develop and enhance our economy will take flight to foreign land to buy cars yet tomorrow we borrow that money with interest from the same foreign countries to buy more cars and consume more foreign goods.

 Don’t forget we have closed our land borders to enable us grow our local industry. Who be fool?

On their part, at the Senate, a bill sponsored by Ibramhim Gaidam, a former governor of Yobe State, now a senator, is proposing not just amnesty for repentant Boko Haram members but to send them abroad for studies. Yet we say we don’t compensate criminality here as we deal with them decisively like government would always say.

The bill which will create a national agency for education, rehabilitation, deradicalisation and integration of repentant  insurgents in Nigeria, will get its funding from the universal basic education Commission (UBEC) and the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund).

With such laws, Boko Haram members go soon begin the screen members as all you need to do to get rehabilitated and be given foreign scholarship, will be to enroll as a member of Boko Haram, repent after one or two months, and boom, you are on your way abroad for studies. Yet no scholarship for the victims or the student with the highest scores in WAEC or JAMB. Why won’t we be highly spiritual instead of innovative and creative? I don’t know whether to laugh or cry.

What do we tell the children of the victims who for no fault of theirs have found themselves in overcrowded Internally Displaced Peoples camps because their parents were killed by Boko Haram members, and that the same state that cannot guarantee their parents safety is busy compensating the killers of their parents with foreign education, yet we expect such kids not to take up arms against the state tomorrow. We are all a bunch of jokers.

What will you tell the parents of Leah Sharibu, the mother of the abducted schoolgirl in Dapchi (Yobe State) or those from Chibok (Borno State),, majority of whom are still in captivity today or the parents of the boys slaughtered in their sleep in a secondary school in Buni Yadi (Yobe State), that while the state that couldn’t bring the killers of their wards and captors of their daughters to book; those arrested by the state are being compensated with salaries and foreign education, yet a senator sponsored this bill.

Make we dey fear God o. if we are rehabilitating, educating and reintegrating the terrorists, what happens to the victims who are increasing in their numbers by the day. Have they been rehabilitated or abi them no need rehabilitation?

How do we dance on the graves of our service men and women who have died, some carelessly in the fight against terrorism with such an idea and hope to prosper as a nation or find peace with our conscience and maker?

With such ideas without knowing it, we are gradually building and army dissidents who will be emboldened to take up arms against the state in no distant time.

I would therefore, advocate that if our lawmakers don’t want Nigerians to see them as strangers, that is, an assembly of non-nationals, they should not only jettison this ostentatious lifestyle that further fleeces the country, but strive to make laws that will promote unity, equity, welfare, peace and rehabilitation of all Nigerians irrespective of tribe and tongue because we all need rehabilitation.

The average Nigerian should also be aware that the country belongs to all of us, and the time to be collectively and genuinely interested in the affairs of the executive, legislature and the judiciary is now as a little fire you leave today can leave you without a little in the near future.

A word said in half goes into the wise and becomes a hole.

I don talk my own!

Some Nigerians on Twitter have expressed their dissatisfaction with the Bill.

Joshua Oluwafemi@joshfemi_

So, a Bill that seeks to empower NCDC to administer vaccines to curb the spread of Pandemic has hurriedly passed through 1st & 2nd reading in the @NGRHouse w/o a public hearing. Why the rush? What & whose agenda are they pushing? #StoptheNCDCBill @segalink @dino_melaye @realFFK

Isa Abass Usman @Enitan_12

It takes two-third majority to assent bfr a bill can be passed frm a stage to another, but the NCDC bill boycotted this process & ridiculously got to the 2nd reading in the space of 2hrs!

Nigerians wake up!!! this bill is an infringement on your human rights#StoptheNCDCBill

| Duniyar Hausawa |@@HausaTrends

• The Americans are not accepting forced vaccination
• the British are not accepting forced vaccination
• the Europeans are not accepting forced vaccination
Why are you sneakingly forcing it to Nigerians by publishing the so called NCDC bill? #StoptheNCDCBill10112:27 PM – Apr 30, 2020Twitter Ads info and privacy80 people are talking about thisFBA!@favourafolabi

So after 4 weeks that the National Assembly was unable to help the suffering masses of Nigeria with even a loaf of bread, its response is to rush a controversial bill that seeks to further take away their rights while also forcing them to take Bill Gates vaccine? #StoptheNCDCBill14312:13 PM – Apr 30, 2020Twitter Ads info and privacy123 people are talking about thisJÓNÅDO@jonadooflagos

In a democracy state like Nigeria , a bill passed its first and 2nd reading in 2hrs and almost all of the House haven’t seen or read the bill.

And you tell me Nothing is wrong
WAKE UP NIGERIA
this people are evil #StoptheNCDCBill
#StoptheNCDCBill

TheKingMan@reaganwealth

A part of the draconian bill shows a gross abuse of the human rights on Nigerians and it’s sad that this Bill been hastened by @femigbaja @SpeakerGbaja of @HouseNGR. This might just be start of autocracy and the end to YOUR HUMAN RIGHT. #StoptheNCDCBill #SpeakNowNigerians