Following the resumption of the National Assembly from its annual recess on Tuesday, 26 September 2017, the Senate President, Bukola Saraki (APC: Kwara) outlined the priority areas to address to include implementation of the 2017 budget, agitations for restructuring in the country and the ongoing constitution review.
In his address, Sen. Saraki commended the efforts of his colleagues in passing critical legislation aimed at enhancing the welfare of citizens in its last two sessions and highlighted that its schedule for the 3rd session included the review of the implementation of the 2017 Budget by the first week of October. He therefore called on the leadership of Standing committees to initiate the process of putting together oversight plans for the purpose of reviewing the performance of the budget.
Presiding over the session, he addressed the recent calls for restructuring of the country by different ethnic groups stating the need to ” more than ever before, stand for the unity and indivisibility of the country.” In addition, Sen. Saraki called on lawmakers to ensure that they communicated with the Houses of Assembly of their respective States with a view to moving the Constitution Review process forward and revisiting areas that will further strengthen Nigeria’s democracy.
Other areas highlighted in his welcome speech included the importance of Senate’s interventions in areas critical to national development such as in the education and health sector. The Senate President also acknowledged the return of President Muhammadu Buhari to office during its recess and commiserated with victims of the flood crisis across the country in his concluding remarks.
