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Tag: Femi Gbajabiamila

  • NASS leadership: Why I chose Abass to be next speaker – Gbajabiamila opens up

    NASS leadership: Why I chose Abass to be next speaker – Gbajabiamila opens up

    …to perfect our legislative gains

    …says I regret installing Tambuwal as Speaker in 2011

    Speaker Femi Gbajabiamila has revealed the reason behind his decision to support Hon. Tajudeen Abbas as the chosen candidate of the All Progressives Congress for the position of Speaker of the 10th House was to harp on legislative gains recorded by his administration.

    Gbajabiamila also expressed regrets installing Aminu Waziri Tambuwal as Speaker in 2011, he explained that for the 10th House he decided to support the person that is least closest to him, in person of Hon. Abbas.

    The Speaker spoke for the first time on the candidacy of Hon. Abbas as Speaker and Hon. Benjamin Kalu as Deputy Speaker since they were choice of the ruling APC, at the meeting of members of the Joint Task-10th House, held in Abuja Wednesday night.

    This meeting is a continuation of the one held last week where the APC chosen candidates for Speaker and Deputy Speaker were unveiled and present at the meeting was the Speaker, also the APC candidate for the President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, Hon. Ado Doguwa among others.

    TheNewsGuru.com, (TNG) vividly recalls that the Joint Task-10th House is a group of members-elect from across the 8 political parties who had agreed to support any candidate the APC chooses for the Speaker’s position.

    Gbajabiamila who affirmed his loyalty to the party and that he would never go against the decision of the party; however said his decision doesn’t translate to hatred for other aspirants.

    He said: “I stand before you here as a testament of what party loyalty and consistency can do in your life. I have a story to tell and I am sure everybody has one story or the other to tell. My story may not be unique. I came here on the platform of a party. We don’t have independent candidacy in Nigeria. It’s not in our constitution or laws. Perhaps, one day we will get to that point. But my core belief is that if I come here on the platform of a party, there is a saying all over the world that your party is always supreme.

    “You will disagree with your party just like people will disagree amongst family members but at the end of the day, the party is an organized structure. Let no one kid you. I am here to offer advice. I have been the pioneer leader of what they called the House project when we installed Tambuwal as speaker. I regret it. The incoming speaker will tell more of the travails and the problems we went through for 4 years when we did that the first and the second time. And I want you to hold that and start comparison to what the last 4 years have been.

    “Now, when you look at those two sessions and the last one that is just rounding up, you have the benefit of being able to compare and then, you take an informed decision.

    “Not when somebody comes and tells you no, no, the Independence of the legislature cannot be compromised, that’s hogwash. Nobody is compromising the Independence of the legislature. The least person that will do it is me. But the fact that your party says this is where we are going, it doesn’t mean you are compromising the Independence of the legislature. Many of us are new here. People will talk to you. They will cajole you, say all sorts of things in flowery and romantic language but at the end of the day, we have to be mindful of one thing. The party we represent has its leaders.

    “The governors from the state whether we like it or not, are very powerful.

    “You can do your own personal bidding today. I share these things just to advise from my own experience. In 2015, I ran for the speakership of the House of Representatives. The party nominated me.

    “The whole world was sure that I was going to win that race. We lost by about 6 votes. A few of our party members worked against me and combined with the PDP at the time.

    “Four years later, I ran again and won that election with 284 votes, the highest in history of the Nigerian parliament. And what did I do, I think time has come for me to say one or two things I would not have ordinarily say. What did I do? I gave the chairmanship of perhaps the most powerful committee in any legislature in the world to one of the prime movers who fought against me and worked against the party at the time.

    “Not only did I give him that committee, I turned my face away and gave him a free hand just like I gave to every committee chairman. If I don’t support you today, we all have to fear God, it’s for a reason. It’s not because I have a problem with you.

    “It’s not because I don’t like you. It’s because as I stand here today, for those who know me, I just won my sixth term, perhaps the oldest legislator except for one. It’s because I eat, drink and sleep and wake up with the legislature in my heart.

    “That’s my constituency and I love that institution so much. So, I decided to support a person that’s least closest to me of everybody that is running because I saw in him a man with tremendous capacity.”

    He therefore urged the opposition parties’ members-elect to support Abass and Kalu to emerge as the presiding officers, stressing they will be carried along.

    Earlier in his remarks, the APC candidate for President of the Senate, Senator Godswill Akpabio charged the members-elect to be mindful of government.

    He said: “Yesterday, I met the party I actually left a sentence with them or thereabouts, should I leave the sentence with you? In your daily dealings. My late mother told me that I should be aware of the 3Gs: The first G is God; the second G is Gun and the third G is Government.

    “The first G is God Almighty. The second G is what? Gun and the third one is Government. May you conduct yourself mindful of admonition of my late mother, by respecting the 3Gs particularly the Government.”

    In his remarks at the meeting, the APC speaker nominee, Abass urged the members-elect to engage in constructive criticism, saying he was chosen because of his pedigree, even as he also denied sharing the committees.

    According to him, rebellion against the party will not work.

    “Mr speaker has not had discussion on interests in the 10th Assembly. The speaker’s support is based on my pedigree and capacity. He believes I would sustain the achievements of the ninth assembly. Let the contestants engage you on the issues. Is he competent, is he transparent, does he have the right temperament, is he just and fair? These are the right questions. If anyone is trying to drag you to go for another house project, be mindful. In the past, it did not work, in the 8th Assembly it did not work, what makes you think that in the 10th Assembly under a veteran politician like Asiwaju it will work? If you are here to take dividends of democracy to your people, if you are here to contribute your own quota in lawmaking, believe me rebellion against government should not be one of those things you should do. What you need is constructive engagement. We need a guided cooperation between the two tiers of government. So, please take note on that. It is a lie that committees have already been shared among certain members”, he said.

    Also speaking, his deputy nominee, Kalu from Abia State called for synergy amongst the political parties.

    “At this time, a single view will not give us a balanced approach to solve our hydra-headed needs. Joint task is raising a call today and saying come, let us work together as a parliament to give to Nigerians what is best. It’s not about any party. Today, I join my colleagues to say this is your home. The home where you will get leaders that go beyond presiding officers. What you do today on these two weeks with us will determine how high you go because you will not achieve alone but we will join our hands to your own hands. We will help you uphold problems of your constituencies making sure that inequality that exists between the old members and the new members are dissolved so that participatory, inequality would be ended where the voices of various Constituencies could be heard on the floor of the parliament.

    “We are assuring you, my principal has told me that over and over again that we would give you equal platform to showcase the need for which you stood to be elected for your communities. All you have to do is to work with us and together we will tell Nigerians that elementary sovereignty is achievable just like the current leadership has pushed for it, we will sustain it.

    “Together we will tell Nigerians that impartiality of the Speaker is achievable and sustainable just as the Speaker that is here has said.

    “Together we will tell Nigerians that the inequalities that we will balance we would also include gender inequalities. Together we will tell Nigerians that we will innovate and to transform through legislative intervention”, he added.

  • NCC under House of Reps radar over USPF accruals

    NCC under House of Reps radar over USPF accruals

    The Nigerian House of Representatives has commenced a probe into the total accruals, as well as expenditures since the inception, of the Universal Service Provision Fund (USPF), domiciled with the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC).

    TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports the probe is being handled by the House Ad hoc Committee, chaired by Rep. Bamidele Salam (PDP-Osun), which will also investigate why the telecoms regulator has failed to promote widespread availability and usage of mobile telecommunication services nationwide.

    Speaking on Tuesday during a hearing organised by the House Ad hoc Committee, Speaker Femi Gbajabiamila disclosed that the House was concerned that some areas in the country have no access to mobile telecommunication services.

    Gbajabiamila said though Nigeria’s telecommunications sector was one of the largest in Africa, contributing immensely to the economy and lives of millions of Nigerians, most rural communities have no access.

    “It is therefore critical to note that it is not only people residing in urban areas that have the right to telecommunications, consideration should be extended to rural dwellers. NCC as the regulator needs to ensure proactiveness in ensuring qualitative and efficient services are offered by the telecommunication operators.

    “And each part of the country enjoys access to telecommunications which is a necessity in today’s world, to be at par with developed nations. This has become necessary because mobile telecommunications has grown to become vital to Nigeria’s economic development, as it provide the infrastructural backbone for digital economy that drives development,” the Speaker said.

    Gbajabiamila said that the Ad Hoc Committee was constituted to probe the level of service delivery in the telecommunication sector, adding that NCC and other operators in the sector needed to live up to expectations in ensuring efficient and qualitative service delivery to all Nigerians and not to some specific areas.

    Earlier, during the hearing, the Chairman of the committee said that the hearing was to investigate why mobile telecommunications coverage was not total as envisaged by the NCC Act.

    Rep. Salam said that the parliament was also interested in the steps so far taken by the regulator to bridge the access gap, especially to underserved and unserved areas.

    The Chairman confirmed that the committee will also probe the total accruals into the Universal Service Provision Fund as well as its expenditures since inception.

    “By the resolution of the house, the major stakeholders in this industry have been contacted and invited to come and make presentations in this hearing. We are hopeful that at the end of the three days set aside for this purpose, we will reach the main purpose of the committee.

    “This industry is very critical to national development, security and poverty alleviation as seen in most economies of the world. Nigeria as the largest democracy in Africa and third largest in the world cannot be seen lagging behind in terms of leveraging on the opportunities available in this industry to advance the welfare of its citizens,” he said.

    Salam said that the House would find solutions to all bureaucratic bottlenecks which may have made it impossible to achieve the desired target. He also assured that the committee will do a thorough job in line with its mandate and turn in the report in due course.

    TNG reports the USPF was established by the Federal Government of Nigeria to facilitate the achievement of national policy goals for universal access and universal service to information and communication technologies (ICTs) in rural, un-served and under-served areas in Nigeria.

    The Nigerian Communications Act (NCA) No 19 of 2003, Part IV details the Universal Service Provision (USP) in Nigeria. Section 115 of the Act established the Universal Service Provision Board with the mandate to supervise and provide broad policy directions for the management of the USP Fund.

    Section 118 of the Act established the USP Secretariat and states that it shall reside in the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) and shall be responsible for the day-to-day administration of the Universal Service Provision.

  • $2.4bn oil revenue probe not witch-hunting, says Gbajabiamila

    $2.4bn oil revenue probe not witch-hunting, says Gbajabiamila

    The 2.4 billion dollars revenue probe over the alleged illegal sale of 48 million barrels of crude oil export from  2014-2015 is not a witchhunt, says Mr Femi Gbajabiamila,  Speaker of the House of Representatives.

    Gbajabiamila made the clarification at plenary on Tuesday in Abuja, during the House of Reps Ad Hoc Committee probe of the alleged sales.

    According to him, the exercise is a constitutional responsibility, within the legislative powers of the house as enshrined in sections 88 and 89 of the 1999 Constitution.

    He said in the light of dwindling revenue accruing to Nigeria from crude oil sales, it was alarming to learn, from a whistleblower, of allegations that over 2.4 billion dollars in possible revenue for the country was lost.

    This, according to him, is from the sale of 48 million barrels of Nigeria’s crude oil cargoes in China.

    Gbajabiamila said Nigeria’s revenue-to-GDP ratio was below five per cent, which was rated among the five lowest countries in the world.

    He said it was reported that about 700 million dollars worth of crude oil was lost to oil theft monthly in Nigeria, adding that between January and July 2022 alone, the country lost 10 billion dollars to the crime.

    The speaker said the recommendation of the ad hoc committee would guide the house in making an informed decision in considering the Whistleblower Bill currently before it.

    “Let me state emphatically, that whistle-blowers that volunteer information to this house will receive the maximum legislative protection and confidentiality.”

    The committee in its ruling, however, summoned the Minister of Finance, Attorney General of the Federation, Accountant General of the Federation among others, to appear before it.

    Chairman of the ad hoc committee, Rep. Mark Gbillah, said the committee was looking at the issues that had to do with allegations of 48 million crude oil barrels sold in China.

    He said: “It is unfortunate that the minister of finance and the attorney general of the federation are not here.

    “This is a formal request from the committee that the minister and others should appear before this committee because they have received formal invitation to do so.”

    According to Gbillah, there are responses received from the accountant general’s office that show that the minister of finance has been approving payments to whistleblowers in percentages at variance with the policy.

    “There have been allegations of the AGF being involved also in receiving funds from outside the country without these funds being remitted into the federation account in line with the provisions of the constitution.

    “There are allegations that expenditure of these recoveries have also been done in complete violation of the provisions of the constitution,” Gbillah said.

    Those who appeared before the committee included the Nigeria Intelligence Agency (NIA), Oriental Energy, and the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB).

    Mr. Johnson Agboneonayima, Federal Commissioner (CCB) in Charge of Monitoring, however, said he had in 2015 when he was a member of the eighth assembly, raised a motion on the volume of theft of the nation’s crude oil.

    He alleged that some cabal had derailed the wheel of the progress of the country through massive theft of the nation’s crude oil.

  • Gbajabiamila bares mind on 9 aspirants for Speaker

    Gbajabiamila bares mind on 9 aspirants for Speaker

    Femi Gbajabiamila has bared his mind on 9 aspirants seeking to occupy the position of the Speaker of the House of Representatives in the 10th Assembly.

    TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports Gbajabiamila, incumbent Speaker of the Nigerian House of Representatives, disclosed he met with all 9 aspirants for the Speakership position on Thursday.

    Gbajabiamila said all 9 aspirants are well-known to him having worked with them for many years, adding that he has no doubt anyone of them will do well in continuing and building on the legacy of the 9th Assembly.

    “Yesterday I met with aspirants for the office of the Speaker of Nigeria’s House of Representatives in the coming 10th Assembly.

    “All 9 aspirants I have known and worked with for many years and I have no doubt will do well in continuing and building on the legacy of the 9th Assembly,” Gbajabiamila.

    Among those justling for the Speaker position are Deputy Speaker, Ahmed Wase; Majority Leader, Alhassan Ado-Doguwa; Chairman of the House Committee on Navy, Yusuf Gagdi; lawmaker representing Ekiti/Isin/Irepodun/Oke-Ero Federal Constituency in Kwara State, Abdulraheem Olawuyi, amongst others.

  • Reps seek compulsory 5-year service before Nigerian-trained doctors can go abroad

    Reps seek compulsory 5-year service before Nigerian-trained doctors can go abroad

    A bill to prevent Nigerian-trained medical or dental practitioners from being granted full licences until they have worked for a minimum of five years in the country has passed second reading at the House of Representatives.

    The bill is part of the measures to halt the increasing number of medical doctors leaving Nigeria for other countries in search of ‘greener pastures.’

    The title of the amendment bill, which was sponsored by Rep. Ganiyu Abiodun Johnson, reads, “A Bill for an Act to Amend the Medical and Dental Practitioners Act, Cap. M379, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004 to mandate any Nigeria-trained Medical or Dental Practitioner to Practise in Nigeria for a Minimum of Five (5) before being granted a full licence by the Council in order to make Quality health Services available to Nigeria; and for Related Matters (HB.2130).”

    The second reading was taken on the floor of the House in Abuja on Thursday.

    Johnson told the House that it was only fair for medical practitioners, who enjoyed taxpayer subsidies on their training, to “give back to the society” by working for a minimum number of years in Nigeria before exporting their skills abroad.

    The majority of lawmakers supported the bill, though a number of them called for flexibility and options in the envisaged law.

    One member, Rep. Uzoma Nkem-Abonta, opposed the bill on the grounds that it was more like enslavement to tie a doctor down for five years in Nigeria, post-graduation, before seeking employment in a foreign country.

    However, a majority voice vote passed the bill for second reading.

    The plenary of the House was presided over by the Speaker, Rep. Femi Gbajabiamila.

  • 2023 Polls: “Investigate and bring perpetrators of electoral violence to book” -Gbajabiamila tells security agencies

    2023 Polls: “Investigate and bring perpetrators of electoral violence to book” -Gbajabiamila tells security agencies

    The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon Femi Gbajabiamila, has called on the authorities to investigate and bring perpetrators of electoral violence to book.

    In his words: “It’s unfortunate! We just have to continue to educate ourselves and encourage people to go out and exercise their franchise.

    “There’s freedom of movement, freedom of expression as enshrined in our constitution and voting for whoever you want is part of the freedom of expression. Your vote is an expression that is guaranteed under the constitution. So, we have to just continue to imbibe that culture of tolerance and allowing people to vote their choices.”

    I think INEC has corrected whatever lapses or loopholes they had and we are seeing a much better operation this time around

    He commended the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, for improving the electoral process during the Governorship and House of Assembly elections.

    Giving the commendations on Saturday, Gbajabiamila said that INEC has enhanced its game compared to what was obtainable two weeks ago during the Presidential Elections in Nigeria.

    “From what I’ve heard and what I’ve seen, INEC has opted its game. There’s been a lot of improvement in terms of preparedness by the commission. Materials came early, the staff came early, accreditation has gone well, BVAS has worked practically everywhere from my understanding.

    “That’s on one hand as far as INEC is concerned. As far as the people are concerned, the electorates, the masses, I believe that It’s very very peaceful. You can see here in my polling unit it’s orderly and peaceful,” Gbajabiamila said.

    2023 Polls: "Investigate and bring perpetrators of electoral violence to book" -Gbajabiamila tells secutity agencies
    Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon Femi Gbajabiamila

    He also said that what happened two weeks ago was a learning process for INEC which has been corrected by the commission.

    The Speaker said; “I think what happened two weeks ago was a learning process. INEC tried to introduce a new technology which we all applauded. I don’t know what happened to the technology.

    “It’s a learning curve and I think INEC has corrected whatever lapses or loopholes they had and we are seeing a much better operation this time around. You know the system is perfected. It is not perfected on the first day. It’s perfect as you continue to familiarise yourself with it.”

    Gbajabiamila also said that every system required perfection.

    He however lamented the low turnout of the people for the polls saying the number is less than that of the presidential election.

    “I think the downside is the voter turnout. It has been incredibly low. The “mad rush” of two weeks ago is not there,” he stated.

    Gbajabiamila also said that although there was a violent build-up to the election in Lagos, there was a need to continue to educate the people on the need to exercise their franchise.

     

     

  • NASS leadership: No zoning arrangements yet until after guber elections -APC

    NASS leadership: No zoning arrangements yet until after guber elections -APC

    Apparently sensing the danger of quickly announcing the zoning formula for the tenth National Assembly, the APC after a meeting declared that zoning will be after guber and State assembly elections.

    Femi Gbajabiamila, Speaker, House of Representatives, and Ali Ndume (APC) Borno-South), spoke with State House correspondents on Monday after the meeting of the APC leadership with lawmakers-elect at the State House Banquet Hall, Abuja.

    The meeting was chaired by the Vice-President-elect, Sen. Kashim Shettima.

    The duo said that the party’s leadership urged the lawmakers-elect to focus on the forthcoming governorship election.

    Gbajabiamila said that the meeting was to bring the National Assembly members-elect together to celebrate the party’s victory.

    He said the meeting was to assure members that in spite of all the odds against the party, it was able to overcome.

    “On the issue of zoning, yes, we did talk about it; it is neither here nor there yet; we have another election coming up this weekend and we want to make sure that everybody goes back home, roll up your sleeves.

    “It is not hurray yet; we are not there yet; we need to complete the victory and our joy before we talk about the National Assembly; and that’s basically what it was about,’’ he said.

    He said that the absence of the president-elect of at the meeting did not affect the outcome.

    According to him, question of zoning should be put on hold until the election is over.

    He explained why he was not available to pick up his Certificate of Return from the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on March 7.

    “All I heard was that I didn’t come here last week to pick up my certificate and because of that somebody conjectured that must be because I didn’t care about it or something about chief of staff.

    “ It will interest you that I was in Lagos; I couldn’t leave Lagos because I was campaigning for my party.

    “It will also further interest you that I was not here four years ago to pick up my certificate because I couldn’t make it; I didn’t think it was anything significant.

    “I will pick my certificate today or tomorrow,’’ he said.

    On his part, Ndume said that the meeting was to evaluate the party’s performance and go back home and complete the victory.

    He said that Nigerians had spoken and elected APC, adding that there would be usual ups and downs in every electoral process.

    “And the party, as expected also, appealed to the members of the National Assembly-elect to play down on the leadership issues and concentrate so that we take the election battle to the end; and that is to ensure that we win our states; and that is exactly what we are doing.

    “The party has already strengthened us and we agreed that interactions like this should be frequent so that we will be going in the same direction instead of having issues by the experience of 2015 and 2019 to some extent.

    “The issue of zoning did not come up; the president-elect is a parliamentarian; he has more experience than most of us and coincidentally, the Nigerian government is going to be National Assembly government.

    “The president-elect was a senator; the vice president-elect was a senator; the party chairman was a senator; the secretary of the party was a senator; I believe that this time around we are going to have a rancor-free relationship,’’ he said.

    He said that the National Assembly should produce its leadership based merit while also considering justice, fairness and equity.

  • Updates: Gbajabiamila returns to HoR for sixth term

    Updates: Gbajabiamila returns to HoR for sixth term

    The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rep. Femi Gbajabiamila, has been re-elected for the 6th term to the National Assembly.

    In a statement by Lanre Lasisi, Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to the Speaker, Gbajabiamila hailed his constituents in the Surulere 1 Federal Constituency of Lagos State for electing him yet again.

    He emerged victorious during the National Assembly elections that took place on Saturday.

    Gbajabiamila polled 19,717 votes, defeating his closest opponent, Bosun Jeje of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), who scored 5,121 votes.

    Speaker Gbajabiamila said he remained grateful to the people of Surulere 1 for giving him the sixth term mandate, noting that he would not disappoint them.

    He said he would continue to work assiduously and bring more developmental projects to Surulere and beyond.

    “I am immensely grateful to the people of Surulere for their overwhelming support. I do not take your support for granted.

    “As your representative for the past 20 years, I have always protected your interest. I am proud of you as my constituents. I thank our teeming supporters, our Surulere APC leaders, party members, CDAs and residents for their massive support.

    “This victory is not mine alone. It is a victory for democracy. Surulere has made history by this sixth mandate given to me, which would definitely spur me to do more for you,” Gbajabiamila said.

    The Speaker was first elected to the House of Representatives in 2003 to represent Surulere 1 Federal Constituency. Since then, he has won elections in the subsequent five election cycles, including Saturday’s.

    Gbajabiamila remains the only lawmaker from South West geopolitical zone to have been elected six times to represent his constituency.

    During his 20-year journey in the House of Representatives so far, Gbajabiamila has served as Minority Whip, Minority Leader, Opposition Leader, and Majority Leader before getting elected as Speaker in 2019. He remains the only lawmaker in Africa to have done this.

  • Saboteurs behind naira, fuel crises – Gbajabiamila

    Saboteurs behind naira, fuel crises – Gbajabiamila

    Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mr. Femi Gbajabiamila, has attributed the current hardship occasioned by fuel and naira scarcity to the activities of saboteurs.

    Gbajabiamila made this known in Lagos on Tuesday, during the launching of the second phase of a transport initiative called “Gbaja Ride”, designed to empower his Surulere constituents.

    35 low-fare buses that would ply different routes in Surulere and its environs were inaugurated.

    He said the fuel crisis and the lingering scarcity of naira notes were carefully contrived by some elements to derail the successes of President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration to achieve political motive.

    He said the House of Representatives was working hard to rescue citizens from the current hardships towards bringing relief as soon as possible.

    “As your representative and Speaker, I have a good understanding of the current hardships and discomfort being faced by many Nigerians, without exception to my constituents.

    “The lower legislative chamber under my leadership has been on the side of the people, working tirelessly to rescue them from these difficulties.

    “I am glad that the judiciary has also confirmed our position on the implementation of  the policy of  naira redesign ”

    He said the naira swap policy was a  well-thought-out one, which had unfortunately been hijacked and politicised.

    He alleged that some elements had created crisis around the policy just to stop the All Progressives Congress(APC ) presidential candidate, Bola Tinubu, from winning the presidential election.

    He said the plot seemed to be failing as Nigerians were still keeping faith with the APC and Tinubu in spite of what they were going through.

    “Nobody can convince me that it is not a plot to stop Asiwaju from becoming the president of this country.

    “But I am glad that our God is a wonderful being, as the plot these people sat together to hatch he has intervened.

    “I  have followed the campaign team to the East, North and everywhere with Asiwaju and I doff my hat for Nigerians.”

    Gbajabiamila urged Nigerians to cast their votes for Tinubu on Feb.25, saying he would not disappoint Nigerians if elected.

    He said none of the candidates vying for the presidency had the capacity or competence to lead the country, except Tinubu.

    Speaking on the  “Gbaja ride”, the Speaker said the first edition kicked off in June 2018 with 30 new buses,160 motorcycles, and 25 tricycles.

    it was designed to empower the constituents and ease movements.

    He said the second phase had been better structured to offer better bus services to the people of Surulere at very low fares.

    Gbajabiamila said the new 35 buses would be run in partnership with members of Lagos State Park and Garages Administrators and that many routes would be covered by the buses.

    He, however, said the buses would offer free rides to teachers, students, and residents who are above 70 years.

    He explained that  the scheme was one of his many interventions geared toward improving  the lot of the people of the constituency

    Earlier, Mr. Sulaiman Yusuf, Chairman, Surulere Local Government, commended Gbajabiamila for the initiative.

    He said the scheme was another proof that the Speaker was committed to the wellbeing of the people of his constituency.

    “This is another proof that the Speaker cares .He has done so much for the people of Surulere and we are so proud of him.

    Mr. Fouad Laguda, APC Chairman in the area, also thanked Gbajabiamila for the initiative, saying it would ease the movements of people in the area as well as  provide job opportunities

    He urged the people of the area to continue to keep faith with APC and vote for all the party’s candidates on Feb.25.

  • Currency swap: Reps to reconvene if CBN fails to address hardship – Speaker

    Currency swap: Reps to reconvene if CBN fails to address hardship – Speaker

    The House of Representatives say it will reconvene before the Feb. 25 elections, if the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) fails to address the hardships Nigerians are facing following the currency swap policy.

    The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mr Femi Gbajabiamila, said this in a statement issued in Abuja by Mr Lanre Lasisi, his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity.

    He said the house would continue to monitor the CBN’s implementation of the policy closely following the Green Chamber’s meeting with the CBN governor, Godwin Emefiele, on the issue.

    Gbajabiamila said he was on the verge of signing an arrest warrant against Emefiele, following his initial failure to appear before an ad hoc panel of the House.

    “The House of Representatives intervened on several occasions. We summoned the CBN governor the first time and again, but he refused to answer, because we had many hard questions for him.

    “It was until I issued the threat of warrant of arrest before he came, and I would have signed that warrant,” he said.
    He said it would have been the first time in the history of the National Assembly that a CBN governor would be arrested, adding that he will have done it.

    He said many have argued on the independence of CBN, the autonomy of CBN, adding that it did not make CBN above the law.

    He said the constitution gave the House the power to issue an arrest warrant against anyone.

    “We can summon anybody and that was exactly what the House was going to do until the CBN governor came.

    “So, we are watching, and we are monitoring very closely. If need be, we will reconvene the House, even though we have been away for our elections. I will call the House back, if need be,” he said.

    Gbajabiamila said amidst the ongoing hardship, the Presidential candidate of the APC, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, has identified with Nigerians and faulted the implementation of the policy.

    According to him, it has necessitated the extension of the deadline for the collection of the old currency.