Nation
Senate Affirms Dickson Akoh As Originator of Peace Corps Bill
Amidst controversies over the face behind the Nigeria Peace Corps Bill, the Senate has declared Professor Dickson Akoh as the owner of the bill which both Chambers of the National Assembly , legislated upon and transmitted to President Muhammadu Buhari for assent last month .
In a statement signed by Senator Ali Ndume ( Borno ,) in his capacity as the sponsor of the bill ,for an Act to establish the Nigerian Peace Corps in the Senate , accordingly adopted by the two chambers of the National Assembly, Thursday declared that any other group or individual , laying claim and parading itself as Nigerian Peace Corps , is illegal.
Senator Ndume, who chairs the Senate Committee on Army but sponsored the the bill said it was the Dickson Akoh led Peace Corps Bill that was considered , passed and adopted by both chambers of the National Assembly
According to Ndume an alleged claim by one Mustapha as the owner of the bill for the Peace Corps of Nigeria is false.
The statement reads : “The attention of the leadership of the Senate and indeed the National Assembly has been drawn to different groups laying claims to the Bill for ran Act to establish the Nigerian Peace Corps which was harmonized and adopted by the two Chambers of the National Assembly.
“The Bill as passed by the two Chambers of the National Assembly is solely sponsored by the current Peace Corps of Nigeria under the headship of Prof. Dickson Akoh as the National Commandant.
“Since the Bill was transmitted to Mr President for his assent by the Clerk of the National Assembly on the 12th April, 2023, the Senate has been inundated with several entreaties as to the status of the Bill, especially the Organization that is sought to give statutory backing after *Mr President’s assent* to the Bill.
“To put the record straight, Part VIII of the Bill titled “Dissolution of the existing Peace Corps of Nigeria and Savings” explicitly provides that at the commencement of the Act that the existing Peace Corps of Nigeria will be dissolved and transmute to the Nigerian Peace Corps. The import of this therefore is that the Bill only sought to give statutory backing to the existing Peace Corps of Nigeria under the leadership of Prof. Dickson Akoh.
“Also, on the issue of the nomenclature of the headship of the proposed Nigerian Peace Corps, the title is National Commandant as contained in Part III, Section 11(1) of the Bill as passed and not Commandant General as widely been speculated.
“However, the Bill made adequate provision in Section 38 (8) was made to accommodate individuals, groups, associations or bodies that have shown or demonstrated interest to be absorbed as members of the Corps shall be absorbed subject to the mandatory basic training and orientation programme of the Corps as prescribed on the commencement of this Act.
“It is important to say that effect cannot be given to this Bill until same is assented to Mr President. Therefore, any group laying claim and parading itself as Nigerian Peace Corps for now is illegal.”
The harmonised version of Peace Corps Nigeria Bill was adopted by both chambers of the National Assembly last month and transmitted to the Presidency.
By: Nneka Amaechi-Nnadi, Abuja