The 8th Senate, which was inaugurated on June 9, 2015 adjourned its legislative activities after four years on Thursday. The senate adjourned indefini
The 8th Senate, which was inaugurated on June 9, 2015 adjourned its legislative activities after four years on Thursday. The senate adjourned indefinitely after the question was put by the President of the Senate, Dr Bukola Saraki and unanimously adopted by the lawmakers.
Although the life of the 8th senate stands officially dissolved, midnight of June 8, to pave way for inauguration of the 9th senate on June 11, with the indefinite adjournment, it will no longer hold legislative activities.
Saraki in his farewell speech thanked his colleagues for demonstrating patriotism towards protecting the sanctity of the legislature. He said although some of them had to pay dearly for daring to defend the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, it was worth it. He said he was bowing out a fulfilled man, knowing that in spite of the hiccups experienced in the life of the senate, the achievements recorded could not be matched.
He also thanked the House of Representatives for the remarkable unity of the two chambers of the 8th National Assembly, adding that it was only in unity that they were able to withstand the storm. He noted that the legislations passed in areas affecting the daily lives of citizens, the economy, education, security, anti-corruption, health and many more, would remain a benchmark.
According to him, working together, they achieved many “firsts” in the 8th Assembly saying, “we should rightly be proud of these, especially as they are imperishable legacies we are leaving for the people.According to him, responding to the needs of Nigerians was our calling, and by so doing, I believe we made a real difference in people’s lives.
“We promised transparency in the National Assembly Budget and kept our word, subjecting NASS Budget to public scrutiny for the first time since Nigeria’s return to democracy.
Saraki said the 8th senate was able to break the jinx on several bills that eluded previous senates such as the decade-old Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB), the Petroleum Industry Governance Bill (PIGB), the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA), the Nigeria Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU) Bill, the Nigerian Football Federation Bill which had been caught in the legislative bottleneck for 15 years, the Not-Too-Young-To-Run law among others.
He advised whoever would succeed him to be there for the people, act in the interest of the average Nigerian, keep the legislature always at the behest of the citizens, and allow the national assembly to be the people’s parliament. Saraki however enumerated some gray areas of the 8th senate to include the poor relationship with the Executive. He called for more engagements and collaboration between the two arms in future assemblies. In their contributions, lawmakers took turns to appraise the achievements of the 8th senate.
