The Governor of Cross River State, Bassey Otu, has described the constituents’ demand on their lawmakers to execute constituency projects as “excessive” and outside the purview of lawmakers.
The governor said this at the maiden edition of the Hillary Bisong Colloquium, held on Wednesday in Calabar.
The theme of the Colloquium is, “Lawmaking and Constitutional Democracy: The Nigerian Experience”.
According to him, the excessive demand is the reason many lawmakers are struggling with their constitutional responsibility of lawmaking.
Otu, represented by the Commissioner for Education, Sen. Stephen Odey, said that “lawmaking is one of the critical components of governance”.
He said that the sustenance of democracy rests primarily with lawmakers.
He said, “Nigerians are yet to clearly understand what lawmaking is all about.
“Lawmaking is all about the people you represent.
“People believe that when you are a lawmaker, you execute projects, but the responsibility of a lawmaker is to sponsor bills that improve the quality of life of the people.
“This is what Hillary Bisong has been doing. And to have sponsored up to eight bills that went through the rigours of lawmaking and got passed, no other contribution is better than that.”
The governor welcomed the idea of the colloquium, saying that the people would go back to knowing the roles of the legislator.
“With this, those excessive demands will be curtailed, and our lawmakers can concentrate and make laws for the good of our state,” he said.
Also, the Senator representing Cross River Central Senatorial District, Eteng Williams, said section 4 of the constitution is clear on what a parliamentarian should do, “which is lawmaking, representation, and oversight function”.
He also said a lawmaker is not elected to fight the executive but to work together to see what can be attracted to his constituents.
The Speaker of the State Assembly, Elvert Ayambem, said that sponsoring bills that affect the people is the critical role of a lawmaker, “and that is what Bisong has been doing”.
In a speech, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, said constitutional democracy is the foundation of the country’s progress, and advocating for the people is the lawmaker’s function.
Abbas, whose address was delivered virtually by Prof. Julius Ihonvbere, commended the convener’s work rate, saying that constitutional democracy rests on two principles: “legality and legitimacy”.
Bisong, who represents Boki II in the state assembly, decried the poor knowledge of the Nigerian constitution by the people.
He said the constitution is the single instrument that ushered in democracy, “yet the majority of Nigerians do not know its contents, and this practice should change.”
