Lawmakers Okay Community Dev Bill

Legislators in the State House of Assembly have thrown their weight behind the newly promoted Rivers State Community Development Bill (HA-15).
The bill got a second reading on the flour of the House last week with majority hailing it as crucial in engendering development at the grassroots.
In the words of Hon. Michael Chinda representing Obio / Akpor II, “this bill is very important because CDCs will be given legal backing to operate.
The legislator stressed Community Development Committees (CDCs) play important roles in their communities “they determine the kind of projects and how it should be done in their communities. All these various bodies ravaging communities will stop. On his part, Hon. Mathew Dike of Tai Constituency said the bill was timely, considering the role CDCs played as liason between companies and their host communities. “This Assembly will be proud that an all important bill has been passed by this House “, he stressed.
Dike’s view was supported by Hon. Bariene Deeyah, who noted that CDCs were key players in community development while recalling that, “4 am a product of CDC and I want the Assembly to escalate this bill to law”.
Explaining why the House has the powers to promulgate such legislation, Sam Ogeh of Emohua constituency says it falls within the purview of the house to make laws bordering on their constituents.
In the view of Ogeh,”CDCs are very close to the people and so most crisis in the communities could be averted with regulation of their activities.
Hon. Ogeh’s view was in response to an earlier argument by Hon. Victoria Nyeche of Port Harcourt I that CDCs be allowed to be regulated by traditional rulers, or better left in the hands of Local Government Councils to oversee.
Contrarily, the speaker, Rt Hon. Ibani, pointed out that making laws to regulate CDCs was in the best interest of the state,
“We should be able to pass laws that enhance peace and security in our various communities”, he maintained.

By: Kevin Nengia.