Director-general of the National Institute of Legislative and Democratic Studies (NILDS), Prof Olanrewaju Sulaiman has expressed concern over the role of state governors in high-turnover rate of legislators across the country.
Sulaiman in his paper titled: “High turnover of lawmakers: Impact and way forward” during the 2022 Press Week organised by the House of Representatives’ Press Corps, averred that the high turnover rate does not only disrupt legislative process and activities but also do not ensure continuity between one session of the Assembly and its succeeding regimes, as well as stall timely passage of critical bills such as Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) for over 15 years.
While noting that the high turnover trend also incapacitates the legislature as an institution in the country, Professor Sulaiman underscored the need to de-emphasize money politics in Nigeria and ostentatious living style of politicians.
Sulaiman who observed that politics should be about service to the country and not short route to accumulating personal wealth averred that “Legislature has a major role to stem corruption in the country, thereby helping to promote accountability and good governance that will deliver maximum democratic dividends to the vast majority of Nigerian citizens.”
