Politics
‘Inadequate Funding, Inhibiting Oversight Functions Of Legislators’
The Clerk of the National Assembly (CNA), Mr Ojo Amos, has stated that inadequate funding was inhibiting legislators from performing their oversight functions.
He made the remark at at a three-day capacity building workshop for directorate cadre staff of the Senate, in Abuja on Monday.
Amos said: “It is regrettable that funding has been inhibiting the activities of our committees, especially, in the area of effective oversight functions.
“In comparison to what is available as global best practice; committees should have vehicles, fully equipped secretariat and funds to conduct their activities.
“There must be diligent record keeping, for easy and quick referencing always, for the purpose of rendering smooth advice to the legislators; while there is need to formulate realistic annual work plans for the committees.
“It is imperative that the Senate, the highest legislative partner in Nigeria’s representative democracy, needs to continuously respond to rising expectations of its constituents.
“This is in order to be on top of its constitutional functions of representation, law making and other oversight duties”.
Amos said the internal workings of the parliament and relations with the other branches of government, especially the executive, were fundamental to the health of the National Assembly in Nigeria.
“Directors should be accountable to their committees and departments, because under our watch, we will not entertain any excuse, as we will not hesitate to apply the public service rules against any erring staff”.
The training was organised by the National Institute for Legislative and Democratic Studies (NILDS) for staff on the directorate level.
In his remarks, Director-General NILDS, Prof. Abubakar Sulaiman, said that the ability of the legislature to effectively deliver on its mandate depended on its human resources.
“Both legislators, but equally importantly, parliamentary staff, who provide essential support to legislators and their activities need capacity building workshops to enhance their jobs.
“Also, for effective parliaments, enhanced democracy, and generally to promote good governance and socio-economic development, there is need for capacity building of the staff.
“More so, staff are the backbone of the legislature, serving not only as engine-room but also the institutional memory of the Assembly”.
Sulaiman said that the workshop was designed following a needs assessment study conducted by the Clerk, Senate, in 2020, before the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic.
“In addition to that, the institute recognises the serious lacunae that opened up in the National Assembly following mass retirements in the last two years.
“This has made the need for training of staff even more necessary, to ensure smooth operations of the assembly particularly in core legislative areas such as chamber operations, among others”.
The director-general further said the institute had already lined up similar workshops for middle and low level cadre of the Senate’s staff on GL 12-14, GL 8-10 and GL 4-7.
He added that the trainings would also be extended to the staff of the House of Representatives.
Declaring the workshop open, President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, noted that to achieve improved quality, the workshop needed to focus on directorate level staff of the senate, as a crucial cadre of the senate bureaucracy.
Represented by Senate Minority Whip, Sen. Philip Aduda, the senate president said the implication of this was the recognition that NILDS was concerned with not only the overall improvement of service delivery” but a growth in the performance levels of different service grades.
“The NILDS training does not also imagine that we have not been hard working. It rather envisages avenues of improvement, aside from reminding us of new techniques in service delivery”, Lawan added
The commission announced the extension in a statement issued on Saturday and signed by the National Commissioner and Chairman of its Information and Voter Education Committee, Mohammed Haruna.
According to INEC, the decision followed appeals by political parties for additional time to complete the submission process through the dedicated online portal.
“The submission window, which according to the revised Timetable and Schedule of Activities for the General Election was originally scheduled to close on Saturday, 8th August, 2026, has been extended to Tuesday, 11th August, 2026,” the commission said.
In a a related development, INEC announced the suspension of PVC collection in Osun State ahead of the August 15 governorship election.
The commission said voters who applied for replacement of lost, damaged or defaced Permanent Voter Cards would have until midnight on Sunday, August 9, to print downloadable copies of their cards.
The electoral body explained that the deadline was necessary to enable it compile data on downloaded PVCs and produce final statistics on the total number of cards collected ahead of the election.
INEC said PVC collection in Osun commenced at the Registration Area level from July 22 to 28, 2026, but was extended to July 31 following complaints about large crowds and difficulties experienced by voters at collection centres.
The exercise subsequently moved to the local government level and ran from August 1 to 7.
The commission also disclosed that replacement downloadable PVCs had been made available to voters in Odo-Otin and Ife Central Local Government Areas following the theft of cards during attacks on the two collection centres.
It stressed that the stolen cards could not be used to vote.
INEC reassured Osun residents of its preparedness for the August 15 governorship election.
“The commission reiterates that the stolen cards cannot be used to vote.
“INEC reassures the people of Osun State of its readiness to conduct a free, fair, credible and inclusive governorship election on 15th August, 2026,” the statement said.
The commission said the deadline, initially set for Saturday, 8 August, has been extended to Tuesday, 11 August 2026, following appeals from political parties for more time.
INEC also announced that the window for voters who applied to replace lost, damaged or defaced PVCs to download their replacement cards will close at midnight on Sunday, 9 August.
The move is to enable the commission compile final PVC collection figures ahead of the 15 August Osun governorship election.
INEC said replacement downloadable PVCs have also been provided to affected voters in Odo-Otin and Ife Central Local Government Areas after hoodlums carted away cards from two collection centres, stressing that the stolen cards cannot be used to vote.
The commission reaffirmed its readiness to conduct a free, fair, credible and inclusive election in Osun State.
Gov. Kefas made the remarks over the weekend at the Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Jalingo, during the flag-off of the second phase of the Renewed Hope Medical Outreach in Taraba State, organised as part of activities marking Prof. Yilwatda’s 58th birthday.
The governor commended Prof. Yilwatda for choosing to mark his birthday by providing medical care to people in need.
“What Professor Nentawe did is a powerful demonstration of what leadership should be,” Gov. Kefas said.
He assured that his administration would continue to support initiatives that complement government efforts to improve healthcare delivery and the wellbeing of residents.
Speaking at the event, Prof. Yilwatda called on Nigerian leaders to embrace the culture of giving and use their positions to touch the lives of the less privileged.
He said his decision to celebrate his 58th birthday in Taraba State was deliberate and informed by the needs of underserved communities, particularly people who face difficulties accessing healthcare because of distance and financial constraints.
According to him, the intervention followed a needs assessment and was extended across the three senatorial districts of the state.
He said the exercise commenced on August 3 at Takum General Hospital and covered the Federal University Teaching Hospital, Wukari; First Referral Hospital, Sunkani, Ardo-Kola Local Government Area; General Hospital, Bali; General Hospital, Gembu; and FMC Jalingo.
Prof. Yilwatda said the intervention provided medical services to thousands of beneficiaries, including people who required surgical procedures.
He said sustainable national development could only be achieved when strong institutions placed Nigerians at the centre of development.
“Leadership is about service,” he said, urging political and public leaders to make giving back to society an important part of their responsibilities.
He reaffirmed his commitment to serving Nigeria and its people, saying his personal vision was to make every day of his life useful to humanity.
“Every day that I live, the vision is: let it be useful to humanity,” he said.
The Taraba State Commissioner for Health, Dr. Bordiya Buma, commended the initiative, saying it was consistent with the Renewed Hope agenda and efforts to strengthen healthcare delivery in the state.
Dr Buma said the second phase followed the successful completion of the first phase, which was conducted simultaneously in six local government areas, with two LGAs selected from each of the three senatorial districts.
According to him, more than 10,000 patients were attended to during the first phase, including people with medical and surgical conditions.
He disclosed that 327 general surgeries, 71 eye surgeries and 575 dental procedures were carried out during the exercise.
The commissioner expressed appreciation to President Bola Tinubu for the Renewed Hope Medical Outreach and thanked Prof. Yilwatda for supporting the initiative and choosing Taraba State as a beneficiary.
The Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Muhammad Ali Pate, also commended Prof. Yilwatda for choosing Taraba State to mark his 58th birthday through a medical outreach.
Prof. Pate said making healthcare the centrepiece of the birthday celebration was significant because health affects everyone.
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