Ex-President Jonathan Hails Past N’Assembly For Standing Up To Executive Arm

Former President Goodluck Jonathan has taken a subtle jibe at the current National Assembly while recalling his time in office, saying that was when Nigeria had a vibrant National Assembly.

Jonathan spoke on Wednesday evening at the Champions of Nigerian Content Awards Dinner, organised by the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State.

Honoured at the occasion with the Nigerian Content Lifetime Achievement Award, Jonathan recalled his eagerness to sign the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Bill into law when he was in office. He noted that the bill, sponsored by Senator Lee Maeba of Rivers State and others, was a product of a truly dynamic legislature.

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“When I was acting President in 2010, and the National Assembly presented the bill, I promptly signed it and we quickly established a monitoring body. Someone like Lee Maeba, the bill’s originator, and his group also deserve recognition. That was a period when the National Assembly truly lived up to its name,” Jonathan recalled.

He further highlighted the Assembly’s assertiveness, recalling how it passed the Niger Delta Development Commission bill into law despite President Obasanjo’s reluctance to sign it.

“In 2000, the NDDC bill was also vetoed by the National Assembly. They overrode President Obasanjo’s refusal. Typically, in other countries, it is the President who vetoes bills.

“But in Nigeria, during the law-making process, it is the National Assembly that can exercise the veto. If the President does not assent to a bill within 30 days, the National Assembly can reconvene and, with a two-thirds majority calculated by headcount, not voice vote—enact the bill into law.

“That is how the NDDC Act came into being, thanks to a truly vibrant National Assembly.

“I would like to use this opportunity to commend Lee Maeba and his team,” Jonathan stated.