Senate bows to public pressure, suspends amendment of Code of Conduct law


The CCT amendment bill: Group drags Nigeria
Nigerian senate under fire over plot to amend the CCT law.
The Nigerian Senate has suspended the ongoing amendment of the Code of Conduct Act which was initiated and referred to its committees on Judiciary and Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions last week.
The legislative body also resolved to suspend amendment of Administration of Criminal Justice Acts (ACJA).
Similarly, the report of the Ethics Committee on Kabiru Marafa, a senator known to be opposed to embattled Senate President Bukola Saraki, was also stepped down.
These decisions were taken during the Senate’s closed door session on Wednesday.
The lawmakers had on April 14 introduced a bill for an amendment of the Code of Conduct Tribunal and Bureau Act, rushing it through second reading just 48 hours after it was first read.
In Nigeria’s lawmaking process, rarely do bills get such accelerated legislative action.
The bill, sponsored by Peter Nwaoboshi (PDP-Delta State), passed second reading and was subsequently referred to the committees on Judiciary and Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions.
The committees was to report back in two weeks.

THE AMENDMENT
The bill seeks to amend Section 3 of the Code of Conduct Bureau and Tribunal Act “to give every public officer appearing before the Bureau fair hearing as provided for under Section 36 (2)(a) of the CFRN 1999 which provides:
“For an opportunity for the person whose rights and obligations may be affected to make representations to the administering authority before that authority makes the decision affecting that person.”
The existing law, Mr. Nwaoboshi said in his lead argument, does not provide for the Bureau (CCB)to take written statement from concerned public officers before referring a matter of alleged non-compliance to the Tribunal (the CCT).

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