A cleric, Rev. Franklin
Ihemefor of the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church has called for the adoption of the unicameral legislative system in Nigeria to cut the cost of governance.
He said the bicameral legislative system currently in place in Africa’s largest nation had proved too costly to sustain.
Ihemefor, who spoke to newsmen in an interview in Port Harcourt, said that adopting unicameral legislature in Nigeria had become imperative to cut high cost of governance.
The cleric spoke against the backdrop of the jumbo allowances paid to lawmakers in the country, described by analysts as among the highest paid in the world.
Ihemefor said that with the state of Nigeria’s financial status, unicameral legislature would not only enhance effective management of resources but checkmate legislative frivolities.
‘’Countries like Senegal are moving from bicameral to unicameral legislature because of the peculiarities of their financial status ‘’We expect Nigeria to be alive to the reality of its economic status by adopting a singular legislature, he said.
The cleric described unicameral legislative model as the panacea to wasteful expenditures by government.
According to him, the Nigerian Government, over the years, especially the National Assembly records more deficits than benefits.
Ihemefor explained that it was unwise of a growing economy like Nigeria to be spending money on legislation in two different chambers.