The Rivers State House of Assembly has said that if states must develop, then, the Constitution of the country must be reviewed.
The Minority Leader of the Rivers State House of Assembly, Hon Benibo Anabraba, came out with this at a special session of the House to commemorate Rivers State Golden Jubilee celebration.
He particularly wanted labour matters transferred to the concurrent list so as to enable states legislate on them, since according to him, the state assembly was being inundated with petitions of either discrimination against Rivers citizens or outright denial of employment by most IOCs, or firms
“It is our hope as a state assembly, especially in a state like Rivers State, that the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria allow us to perform more functions, remove some of the things in the exclusive list and put them in the concurrent list.
“Mr Speaker, for instance, the issue of labour, which has always come before this house where our citizens would complain of discrimination from IOCs and other firms operating in Rivers State, complaining that they have either refused to employ them or do not engage them or do not carry out their corporate social responsibilities.
“If labour is brought into the concurrent list where the state assembly can legislate on it, we would be able to regulate the employment and industrial actions in our state because even the resources we have are in the exclusive list, and if we cannot control our natural resources, surely, we should be able to be part of the exploration or the industrial actions being taken on these natural resources”, he argued.
Also at the same event, the Leader of the Rivers State House of Assembly, Hon Martin Amaewhule, who chronicled the achievements of the 8th Assembly since its inauguration in June, 2015, noted that the house has passed 17 laws and taken resolutions on 66 motions.
He expressed their resolve to ensure that the current administration is supported through legislation, “and we are doing just that” he said, noting that they would not relent in ensuring that they meet the expectations of their constituents and the state.
On his part, the Speaker of the assembly, Rt Hon Ikuinyi Owaji Ibani, assured that the 8th Assembly would continue to accommodate all people and shades of opinions not minding political differences or religious affiliations.
“It is this that would serve as the focus for this assembly to launch itself beyond the 50th anniversary of Rivers State” he noted, adding that the assembly was now poised to look into the future “to see where we can be 50 years after. Today, we have known where we are but in 50 years, where are we going to be?”.
He also added that since democracy is about the people, the 8th Assembly would not fail in living up to the task of adequately giving true representation, noting that they would not allow the labour of the founding fathers of the state go in vain.