ABUJA- Rising from an extraordinary emergency session yesterday, members of the House of Representatives asked the executive arm of government to suspend the removal of subsidy on petroleum products in appreciation of the mood of the nation and to allow for more consultations.
The House which witnessed a very high attendance with 294 members at the session also implored the organized labour and other stakeholders to suspend the strike slated to commence nationwide today in response to the government policy and submit to further dialogue while also appealing to Nigerians to exercise restraint in expressing their displeasure over the removal of the fuel subsidy.
It also invited the representatives of the Executive Arm of government including the Secretary to the government of the Federation and the Minister of Labour as well as labour leaders to meet with the ad hoc committee of the House which was set up to interface with representatives of the executive and organized labour with a view to finding a common ground on the subsidy matter.
Other decisions arrived at by the House yesterday were the setting up of the two ad hoc committees, one to mediate between the executive and organized labour and the other to verify and determine the actual subsidy requirements and monitor the subsidy regime. Yesterday’s decisions were arrived at following the adoption of a Motion on the Removal of Fuel Subsidy by the executive Arm of government, sponsored by Hon. Yusuf Tajudeen and 60 others.
It would be recalled that following the removal of the subsidy on fuel and the spontaneous protests that greeted the decision from across the country, the House of Representatives which had earlier scheduled to resume on the 10th of January had to cut short its recess by two days to attend to the emerging national challenge.
Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Aminu Tambuwal who it was learnt did not have prior knowledge of the removal of the subsidy, however set the tone for yesterday’s deliberation when he called on his colleagues to be guided by the mood of the nation in view of recent bombings targeted against Christians and the culture of fear engendered by these attacks.
The speaker who had earlier read a letter from the president seeking the support of parliament for the declaration of a state of emergency in 15 local governments in four states of the federation where there are serious security challenges called for a minute silence for those who lost their lives at the Madalla Christmas day bombing and those killed in Mubi and other parts of the north.
Hon. Tambuwal commended his Christian colleagues at the House for their restraint and understanding in connection with the Christmas day bombing in Madalla, pointing out that ‘by this act of restraint the objective of these enemies of Nigeria to falsely give religious coloration to their senseless terrorist escapades has been defeated’.
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