A bill seeking to establish the National Research Institute for Chemical Technology scaled second reading in the Senate following consideration of the bill during plenary on Wednesday.
Leading debate on the general principles of the bill sponsored by Senator Sadiq Suleiman (APC, Kwara North). he noted that the bill was read the first time on Tuesday, December 20, 2022. According to the lawmaker, the bill seeks to provide globally competitive and environmentally friendly research, development and innovation.
“This is in the processing and conversion of indigenous raw materials into valuable chemicals and petrochemical products for the development of chemical, biological and man-made fibre technologies for industrial application in Nigeria,” he said.
Senator Suleiman also described the objectives of the Institute when established to include undertaking research and development work on processes for the conversion of agricultural, mineral and other raw materials into useful chemicals.
He further said that the Institute, when created, would be a renowned centre of international excellence in fields of effluent monitoring and control, chemical, biological and man-made fibre technologies. President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, thereafter referred the bill to the Senate Committee on Science and Technology for further legislative action to report back in four weeks.
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Similarly, the National Assembly has approved the establishment of a Federal Medical Centre in Bonny, Rivers State, to cater to the health of Nigerians and others in the country. The approval was completed on Wednesday, during plenary, when the Senate passed the bill in concurrence with the version earlier passed by the House of Representatives.
Sponsored by the member representing Degema/Bonny Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, Rep. Farah Dagogo, the bill will cater to and address the consistent surge in the population of Bonny and Rivers State at large owing to the oil explorative activities constantly going on the Island with a large population of people from all walks of life.
Dagogo, in the bill, noted that the figures of persons on the Island are estimated to increase drastically, especially with the construction of Train 7 of the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG). He added that the few health facilities on the ground in Bonny are incapable of handling serious health-related ailments or emergencies “thus the availability of a good health care facility is critical at this point, and ought to be a matter of grave concerns to the government.”
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The Senate at plenary also concurred with five other bills from the Green Chamber. The bills are the Chartered Institute of Digital Forensic of Nigeria Bill, 2023, Institute of Strategic Management of Nigeria (Establishment) Bill, 2023. Others are the Federal University of Agriculture Ugbakwa Nkanu East, Enugu State Bill, 2023; Insurance Bill, 2023 and Chartered Institute of Economist (Establishment) Bill, 2023.
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.
