Senate inaugurates Standing Committee on Compliance with Resolutions

By Musa Baba Adamu

The Senate yesterday inaugurated its standing Committee on Legislative Compliance aimed at enforcing its resolutions on all its standing committees as well as all the ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) of the federal government.

The committee, chaired by Senator Musa Maidoki (Kebbi South), was inaugurated by the Leader of the Senate and Chairman, Southern Senators’ Forum in the ninth National Assembly, Senator Opeyemi Bamidele.

Speaking during the inaugural meeting of the committee on Tuesday, Bamidele noted that part of the mandate of the committee was to oversight other standing committees as well as all MDAs of the federal government.

He observed that the mandate given to the Chairman of the Committee, Senator Musa Maidoki “can obviously make the committee big if he likes. He can as well make the committee strong if he likes.

“The mandate given to the committee is indeed huge and of national significance considering the impelling need to ensure implicit compliance with all resolutions of the Senate on all its standing committees and MDAs.

“You have the mandate of the Senate to invite any individual, senator, ministry, department or agency with a view to ensuring compliance with all our resolutions. By implication, the Committee on Legislative Compliance is the police of the Senate.

“It is therefore the responsibility of the Committee on Legislative Compliance to duly follow up and ensure compliance with all our resolutions. You need to draw a comprehensive agenda to work with and ensure the functionality of the committee.

“The committee can be as big as the Chairman of the Committee wants it to be. It can also be as strong as the Chairman of the Committee wants it to be,” the Senate leader observed at the inaugural meeting.

Bamidele explained that the challenge of the country was not to make legislations, but ensure outright compliance with laws passed by the two chambers of the National Assembly.

The senate leaders added that the Committee on Legislative Compliance “has mandate of the committee to invite any senator who refused to comply with all the rules of the Senate.”

Bamidele explained that the Committee on Legislative Compliance “is not meant to be anybody’s friend, neither is it constituted to be an enemy to anybody, but to ensure that the resolutions of the Senate are complied with.”

Also, at the inaugural meeting, Maidoki, the Chairman of the Committee, assured the leadership of the Senate of complying with the directive of the upper chamber on the mandate given to them.