What is ‘juicy’ in National Assembly committees?

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TURNING-POINT-Bola-Bolawole

TURNING-POINT-Bola-Bolawole
TURNING-POINT-Bola-Bolawole
Separation of powers is the fulcrum of representative government, otherwise known as democracy. In a democracy, there are usually three arms of government, namely; the Legislature, Executive, and Judiciary. The three are independent and co-terminus: the end of each is to ensure good governance and that the people’s business is done. The process is called checks and balances by which each arm puts the other in check and keeps it within its constitutionally-assigned bounds. According to Lord Acton, “power corrupts; absolute power corrupts absolutely”. Therefore, none of the three is expected to wield absolute powers or become powerful enough to lord it over the others; least of all the citizenry, which is held by most political theorists as the Sovereign in a democracy. Legislature makes the law; Executive executes it and undertakes the day-to-day running of government while Judiciary interprets the law as well as adjudicates where and when disputes arise between citizen and citizen; citizen and any of the three arms of government and or its officials; and between government and government. Amongst the three tiers of government; disputes can ensure vertically and horizontally. The Judiciary is supposed to resolve such disputes as well as make pronouncements on grey areas of the Constitution; taken to its elastic limit in what is called “judicial activism”, smart judges can technically make laws or expand the frontiers of known\existing laws with their pronouncements on, and interpretations of, the provisions of the law.

Many have held, and with justification, that what qualifies a government as representative is the existence of the Legislature or Parliament. Whereas the President\Vice-president, Governors\ deputy governors; and Council chairmen\councillors are also elected by voters, it is the members of Parliament that are usually referred to as the “representatives” of the electorate. Ministers and Commissioners; presidential aides and such other coterie of state officials are usually appointed and not elected; and whereas they are also meant to serve the best interests of citizens, they are not those given the constitutional responsibility to act as “representatives” of the people. In fact, it is the presence or otherwise of Parliament that is the marked difference between military and civilian governments. In military governments, the Legislature is totally obliterated while the Judiciary is left virtually intact. The top echelon of the Executive may be wiped off and replaced by military dictators; but the bureaucracy or what is called the Civil Service is allowed to run as the engine room of government activities. Parliament, thus, is generally seen as the locale of the Sovereign Powers of the state in a democracy. It is not the President that is the Sovereign.

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Apart from making laws, Parliament performs oversight functions over the Executive. One of the most important laws made by Parliament is the Appropriation Law, otherwise known as the “budget”. This is the law that states the expected finances of the State and how these are to be spent in any financial year. Projects and services are identified and how much will be spent on them. Who spends what is also included in every budget. The Executive prepares the budget and submits to the Legislature, whose duty it is to accept, review, modify or reject as the case may be. Where a budget is passed by Parliament and the president assents; it immediately becomes law but where he withholds his assent, Parliament has the option of either taking the document back to work on grey areas or override the president’s veto with two-thirds of its members voting “ayes”. Until a budget is passed by the Legislature and signed by the president, it remains mere estimates\proposals which does not have the force of law. Any Executive that spends money without appropriation by Parliament commits grievous offence which can earn serious sanction, including impeachment (that is, removal from office). In this wise, Parliament plays a role called “oversight”, in which it seeks to ensure that the budget is implemented by the Executive as passed. To achieve this, it divides its members into various committees to “oversee” the Executive. There are usually as many committees as there are activities of government. In recent years, the number of committees has ballooned to please political interests.

Just as we have Ministries that are called Grade A, B, and C; we also have committees that are called “juicy”, “dry land” or “Siberia”. Important Ministries are those that have very lucrative agencies and parastatals under them and whose budgets are always very big. They also have the MDAs that generate a lot of revenue for government. Ministers given charge over such MDAs are seen as “super” Ministers and are usually the envy of their peers. National Assembly Committees which have the task of oversight over such MDAs are called “juicy”. Opportunities to award\collect big contracts, give out\take jobs, dole out\receive other favours and largesse and peddle influence are very high here. Recently, Senate President Bukola Saraki re-shuffled Senate Committees and gave “juicy” committees to some of his sworn political foes in an effort to placate them. Reports said it was in desperate efforts to find “political solution” to Senate leaders’ ongoing trial for corruption and forgery. We need not mention names but Senators so favoured were said to have been pleased with it. There is no other name for this game but corruption and, by law; both the giver and taker are guilty. So, Saraki’s travials may be political after all! On-going anti-graft war may also be victimization of political opponents! The EFCC a pawn and the Judiciary neither independent nor the last hope of the common man! May these not be true!

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