In a significant development, the Senate has rejected a bill seeking to establish the National Road Transport Council in Nigeria. The bill, sponsored by Deputy Senate Leader Oyelola Ashiru, aimed to create an agency to regulate road transport and the transportation profession in Nigeria.
However, lawmakers opposed the bill during Thursday’s plenary, citing concerns about the multiplication of agencies with duplicated functions.Sen. Adams Oshiomhole (APC-Edo) was among the vocal opponents of the bill. He argued that existing institutions like the police and Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) already perform similar functions, and that creating a new
agency would be a duplication of efforts. Oshiomhole expressed regrets that the FRSC has not performed its responsibilities well and suggested that the House should focus on making existing institutions work rather than creating new ones.Other senators, including Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan (PDP-Kogi) and Victor Umeh (LP-Anambra), also opposed the bill.
They argued that the creation of a new agency would lead to unnecessary bureaucracy and increase the financial burden on the government.The rejection of the bill is seen as a move to avoid the multiplication of agencies with duplicated functions and to reduce federal government’s excessive overhead expenditure.
The Senate’s decision is in line with the broader policy statements to avoid creating new agencies and instead focus on making existing institutions work efficiently.This development is significant as it highlights the Senate’s commitment to streamlining government agencies and reducing unnecessary expenditure. It also underscores the need for a more efficient and effective transportation system in Nigeria, which is critical to the country’s economic growth and
development.In his contribution to the debate, Sen. Oshiomhole emphasized the need for the government to focus on strengthening existing institutions rather than creating new ones. He said, “Why Nigeria is committed to cutting federal government’s excessive overhead expenditure, more agencies should not be created.
We need to make existing institutions work, and where they fail to work, we evoke sanction.”The rejection of the bill is a clear indication that the Senate is committed to fiscal responsibility and efficient governance.
It is a move in the right direction, and one that is expected to have a positive impact on the country’s transportation system and overall economic development.