Cross Dressing: Same Sex Marriage Amendment Bill suffers setback in Reps
The House of Representatives, on Wednesday, kicked against the second reading of Same Sex Marriage (Prohibition) Act, 2013, to Prohibit Cross Dressing; and for Related Matters, as well as another bill seeking to establish the Nigeria Diaspora Intervention Trust Fund.
In his lead debate on the Same Sex Marriage Act, sponsor of the bill, Rep. Umar Muda Lawal, faulted the idea of cross-dressing, saying it was foreign to Nigeria, prompting the Deputy Speaker to advise him to withdraw the bill and study the culture of Nigerians first.
“I think you need to work further. Understand the differences and diversity in this country. My take is that you step down this bill for further instructions,” Rep. Ahmed Idris Wase ruled, necessitating the stepping down of the bill.
Confusion in Red Chamber as absence of Lawan, Omo-Agege delays Senate’s plenary
There was confusion in the Red Chamber of the National Assembly on Wednesday, as its scheduled plenary did not start until about 12:40 p.m. following the absence of its presiding officers.
Amidst the absence of the President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan and his deputy, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege, from plenary, most of the lawmakers started exiting the chamber at 12.10 pm, as there was no formal communication on their whereabouts.
While the President of the Senate was in Minna for the APC Presidential campaigns, the Deputy President was reported to have rushed back from Delta State, where he is pursuing his gubernatorial aspiration, to save the situation.
“Thank God we were able to arrive here to sit at 12 p.m., but senators are not supposed to come and wait. “Next time, if you know you are in a tight corner, kindly inform someone and make necessary arrangements rather than keep them waiting,” a visibly concerned Senator George Sekibo (PDP, Rivers East) noted under a point of order at the commencement of plenary.
READ ALSO: Omo-Agege: Deputy Senate President to Governor; do the odds favour him?
Poor Power Supply: Reps want FG to explore renewable energy sources
The House of Representatives has urged the Federal Government to explore renewable energy such as nuclear, solar, biomass, and wind as alternative sources of power supply to Nigerians.This followed a motion on Wednesday, titled “Need for Alternative and Renewable Power Supply in Nigeria,” moved by Rep. Chukwuma Umeoji, which stressed that Nigeria’s inability to achieve stable power supply over decades is a pointer to the fact that its over-reliance on gas and to a lesser extent, hydroelectric power sources alone needs to be reviewed.
Adopting the motion, the House mandated its Committee on Power to liaise with relevant stakeholders in public and private sectors to develop the best strategies for sustainable alternative and renewable energy distribution in the country.
Hacking: INEC to spend N117bn in 2023 Elections Budget on electoral technologies
The Independent National Electoral Commission plans to spend N117bn, representing 33.4 per cent of its N305b budget for the polls, on electoral technologies.
This is coming alongside plans to invest in top-notch cyber security systems to ward off attacks by hackers against its servers, website and database following complaints that the commission’s result viewing portal came under attack from hackers during the Ekiti and Osun governorship elections.
According to the INEC Chairman, Mahmood Yakubu, there is no going back on the commission’s vow to use technology, including Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) and the Result Viewing Portal ( IReV) during the 2023 elections.
2023 Budget: Taraba Assembly approves N173bn
On Wednesday, the Taraba State House of Assembly approved N173 billion as the state’s appropriation for the 2023 fiscal year.
The amount, which is N500 million higher than the N172,734bn estimate presented by Governor Darius Ishaku, is to take care of the Taraba State Independent Electoral Commission, which was not allocated any funds in the 2023 budget.
According to the Speaker of the House, Prof. Joseph Albasu Kunini, “we noticed that TSIEC was not allocated any funds and this government is committed to conducting local government elections periodically, so, there is need to allocate money to the agency to conduct local government elections.”
Ojochenemi Onje-James
Ojochenemi Onje-James is a research writer and journalist with years of proven footprints in areas of crime and politics. She has a M.Sc in International Relations and Strategic Studies as well as a B.Sc in Mass Communication.
