nH NATIONAL ASSEMBLY FIRSTSESSION NO. 139 333 THE SENATE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA ORDER PAPER Wednesday 29th February 2012 1. Prayers 2. Approval of the Votes and Proceedings 3. Oaths 4. Announcements (if any) 5. Petitions ORDERS OF THE DAY· MOTIONS 1. Appointment and Inauguration of the National Council OnPublic Procurement (NCPP): Sen. Ahmad Lawan (Yobe N()rth) Sen. Abdul Ahmed Ningi Sen. Ganiyu Solomon Sen. Smart Adeyemi Sen. Ayogu Eze (Enugu) Sen. Suleiman Adokwe Sen. GeorgeT. Sekibo Sen. Heneiken Lokpobiri Sen. Zainab Abdulkadir Kure Sen. Alkali Jajere Sen. Nenadi Esther Usman Sen. Aisha ]ummai Alhassan Sen. Sahabi Ya'u Sen. Ita Enang Sen. Chris Anyanwu Sen, Ojudu Babafemi Sen. Akinye1ure P. Ayo THE SENATE NOTES that the Public Procurement Act 2007 took effect from June, 2007 and it establishes the National Council on Public Procurement (NCPP) and the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) as the regulatory agencies responsible for the monitoring and oversight of public procurement, harmonizing the existing government procedures and practices by regulating, setting standards and developing the legal framework and professional capacity for public procurement in Nigeria; A WARE that under the Act the National Council on Public Procurement (NCPP) among other things is Lo Consider and approve policies on public Procurement, Approve the appointment of the Directors of tile Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) and Approve changes in the procurement process to adapt to improvements in modern technology; ALSO AWARE that the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) is among others to Formulate the genera! policies and guidelines relating to public sector procurement for the approval of the Council, Subject to thresholds as may be set by the Council, certify Federal procurement prior to the award of contract, supervise the implementation of established procurement policies, Monitor the prices of tendered items and keep a national database of standard prices, prepare and update standard biding and contract documents and Prevent fraudulent and unfair procurement and where necessary apply administrative sanctions; REMINDED that the Nigerian public procurement practice before the enactment of the Public Procurement Act 2007, was unprofessional, inefficient, and ineffective; as it was based on outdated Treasury-Circular which provided only guidelines on public expenditure management; PRINTED BY NATIONAL ASSEMBLY PRESS, ABUJA 334 Wednesday, 29th February, 2012 139 AWARE that the Federal Government established the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) in 2007; rURTHEI{ A WARE that the Federal Government is yet to constitute the National Council on Public Procurement (NCPP), as provided for in sections 1 (1) and 1 (4) of the Public Procurement Act 200'7 respectively; WORRIED that the non-appointment and non-inauguration of the NCPP has invariably rendered the execution of the Public Procurement Act 2007 ineffective, since the BPP is not legislated and designed to function alone, as the Directors of BPP shall be appointed by NCPP as provided in section 2(c) of the Act; FURTHER WORRIED that the operations of the BPP have not resolved the challenges that characterized the procurement process in the Federal Government Contract award due to partial execution of the Act; CONVINCED that the Federal Government could be professional, efficient, and effective and able to tackle the challenges of malpractices, corruption in contract management only by total and complete execution of the Public Procurement Act 2007; Accordingly resolves to: i) URGE the President Commander - In - Chief to appoint and inaugurate the National Council on Public Procurement (NCPP) as provided for in section 1(4) of the Public Procurement Act 2007 ii) URGE the President Commander - In - Chief to constitute the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) as provided for in sections 7(1) and 8(1) in order to establish a legal, formidable, and effective institution, able to effectively exercise its powers and mandate as specified in section 6(1) of the Public Procurement Act 2007. 2. Hardship Occasioned by the New Number Plate and Driver's Licence Scheme of the Federal Road Safely Commission: . Sen. Dahiru Awaisu Kuta (Niger East) Co-Sponsors Sen. Joshua Dariye .c. (Plateau Central) Sen. Kaka, Adegbenga Sefiu (Ogun East) Sen. Victor Lar (Plateau South) Sen. Ajibola, Simeon .s. (Kwara South) Sen. Garba, Gamawa Babayo (Bauchi North) Sen. Lokpobiri, Heineken (BayeIsa West) Sen. Zainab Kure Abdulkadir (Niger South) Sen. Musa, Yusuf Nagogo (Nasarawa North) Sen. Ashafa, B. Olugbenga (Lagos East) Sen. Gobir, Ibrahin Abdullahi (Sokota East) Sen. Gamba, Adamu .1. (Bauchi south) Sen. Usman, Abdul'azizJigawa (North East) Sen. Adokwe Sulaiman .A. (Nasarawa South) Sen. Galaudu, Isa Mohammed (Kebbi North) Sen. Abatemi-Usman Nurudeen (Kogi Central) Sen. Adeyemi Smart (Kogi West) Sen. Omoworare, Babajide .c. (Osun East) Sen. Tukur, Bello Mohammed (Adamawa Central) Sen. Marafa, Kabir Garba (Zamfara Central) nu: SENATE NOTES that the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) is a creation of the Federal Road Safety Commission (Establishment, e.t.c.) Act, Cap F19, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004. ;;'·~:""'1•••7_';-.\:,:·~..,.:·:~.. ·,.'.'-:-" , '"",,'" .,"-•.•.: --".' ":"~·•.v·..,..,,. ,.,',.;,......•••. -..' ~;"'-'-.,. ;:l''i'''''-'_'''';.''''''''; .'-,..>'~. .' ,.: •...•• :.. .:.', ••~ "".l",t NOTES also that this enabling Act empowers the Federal Road Safety Commission to, primarily, prevent and minimize accidents on the highways and clear obstructions on any part of the highways and educate drivers, motorists and other members of the public generally on the proper use of highways.' NOTES further that the Commission was not established principally as a revenue generating Agency for the States or Federal Government. PRINTED BY NATIONAL ASSEMBLY PRESS. ABUJA 139 Wednesday, 29th February, 2012 335 OBSER VES thai the Commission in recent times has embarked on frequent and arbitrary introduction and re- introduction of vehicle number plates and driver's licences. OBSERVES also that the new drivers licence which the Commission launched in 2011 is now issued for Six Thousand Naira from the former Three Thousand Naira while the new number plates has suddenly jumped from its original Five Thousand Naira to an astronomical Fifteen Thousand Naira with those of trucks and other categories of vehicles put at between Twenty to Forty Thousand Naira and that the Commission will ultimately be generating a whopping Two Billion Naira annually as its own share of the new scheme. A WARE that the Commission has adduced, among other. re~l1$ for the new price regime, the need to enhance the integrity of drivers and the creation of a database that will check terrorism. The administrative cost of the project is also one of the reasons proffered as being responsible for the high cost of the licences and number plates. WORRIED that the exorbitant cost of the drivers licences and vehicle number plates have incurred outrage and rejection by the majority of Nigerians because they are financially improvised and therefore find the amount exploitative, prohibitive and insensitive, for a population that is already facing the challenges of a harsh economic condition. WORRIED also that the August 3151 2012 dateline issued by the Commission for the enforcement of the new scheme is not feasible because the current demand for vehicle licence surpasses supply and thereby subjecting applicants to wait for as long as three months after payment before receiving number plates. WORRIED further that the scheme has encouraged the activities of touts and middle-men which has further heightened the increase. ALARMED that the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) has threatened to embark on a strike action in response to this unpopular policy of the Federal Road Safety Commission. Accordingly resolves to: 1. CONDEMN the price regime of the new scheme of driver's licence and vehicle number plates by the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) in 2011. 2. URGE the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) to suspend, forthwith the implementation of the new driver's licence and vehicle number plates. 3. MANDATE the Senate Committee on Federal Character and Intergovernmental Affairs to conduct a public hearing on driver's licence and vehicle number plates scheme by the Federal Road Safety Commission. CONSIDERATION OF BILLS 1. A Bill for an Act to Provide for the Establishment, Preservation and Control of National Grazing Reserves and Stock Routes and the Creation of National Grazing Reserve Commission and for Purposes Connected Therewith 2012 (SB. 60) - Second Reading Sen. Zainab Kure (Niger South) 2. A Bill for an Act to Establish the Erosion Control and Prevention Commission and vest it with the Responsibility for the Prevention, Control, Management and Redress of Erosion and for other Related Purposes, 2012 (SB. 54) - Second Reading Sen. Hope Uzodinma (Imo West) PRINTED BY NATIONAL ASSEMBLY PRESS, ABUJA 336 Wednesday, 29th February, 2012 13'-) COMMITTEE MEETINGS C011I111; tt 1'1' Date Time Venue 1. Marine Transport Wednesday, 29th February, 2012 2.00 pm Committee Room 201 Senate New Building 2. Power, Steel Development Wednesday, 29th February, 2012 2.00pm Conference Room 022 & Metallurgy Senate New Building 3. Public Accounts Wednesday, 29th February, 2012 2.00 pm Hearing room 4 WhiteHouse 4. Defence & Army Wednesday, 29th February, 2012 2.00pm Committee Room 324 Senate New Building 5 i\ vialion Wednesday, 291h February, 2012 2.00 pm Committee Room 107 Senate New Building PRINTED BY NATIONAL ASSEMBLY PRESS, ABUJA.