Issues As Senate Suspends Grazing Bill

MBACHU GODWIN NNANNA, in this report takes a look at the controversy that greeted the suspension of Grazing Reserve Bill in the Upper legislative Chamber

The Grazing Reserve Bill which seeks to create the establishment of grazing areas management commission has generated heat debate among senators as well as Nigerians with proponents and opponents swelling argument in their favour.

The Bill which is being sponsored by the former governor of Kano State, Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso entitled, “A Bill for an Act for the Establishment of grazing Areas Management Agency and for other related matters, 2016 (SB 292)”, is mainly seeking for provision of grazing reserve land for herdsmen in Nigeria.

These arguments for and against the establishment of grazing land for the cattle rearers across the county has pitched Nigerians against primordial lines.

The controversial grazing reserve bill which was read for the first time in the upper chamber could not scale through second reading last week, as it was suspended indefinitely.

The suspension of the Bill followed argument by the senate president,Dr Abubakar Bukola Saraki that the Bill be harmonised and consolidated to avoid clash of interest and duplication of function.

There were strong indications last wednesday, that the contentious grazing reserves bill might not scale through in the Senate going by the body language and mood of the legislators who already expressed reservation on the Bill.

It took the quick intervention of the President of the Senate, Senator Abubakar Bukola Saraki, on these bills, the Upper Chamber would have been thrown into commotion as critics and proponents of these bills were prepared for a show down..

However , there were two other related bills, independently sponsored by senators Barnabas Gemade and Chukwuka Utazi, on grazing reserves and related issues were enlisted on the Senate’s Order Paper to be debated and passed for second reading.

Gemade’s bill is entitled, “A bill for an Act to provide for the Establishment of National Ranches Commission for the Regulation, Management, Preservation and Control of Ranches and for connected purposes, 2016 (SB 293)”, while the third bill, which is being sponsored by Senator Chukwuemeka Utazi (PDP Enugu North), is entitled, “A bill for an Act to Control the Keeping and Movement of Cattle in Nigeria and for related Matters thereto, 2016 (SB 311)”.

The Leader of the Senate, Senator Ali Ndume, first read the three bills out at a stretch and suggested that since the bills were related, they should be harmonised , consolidated and presented as one bill before it could be considered by the Senate.

But Senator Gemade (APC Benue) whose Bill appears to be a counter to the grazing reserve Bill disagreed with that suggestion, urging the Senate to allow the three bills to be presented separately, so that senators could treat them individually on their merits, rather than consolidating them into one document.

As Sen Gemade was still speaking , there was an uneasy movements and grumbling in the Chamber, signifying the readiness of the senators to degenerate to pandemonium.

President of the senate sensing the body language of his colleagues and in his bid to avert any show down at the plenery, said “ before the bills were enlisted for second reading, he had thought that the sponsors of the bill would agree for harmonisation because of their seeming similarity”

Saraki, reasoned that since such anticipatory agreement did not happen, there was need to put the bills on hold. Accordingly, he advised that the bills be stepped down for another unspecified legislative day, obviously to forestall impending commotion in the Chamber.

As the argument whether to take the Bill for the second time or not was going on, the Deputy President of the Senate, Ike Ekweremadu, drew the attention of the senate through a constitutional point of order, alerting his colleagues that, the senate was entertaining such bills outside its jurisdiction. and urged the senate to discontinue the consideration and debate on the Bill as it is not within its constitutional jurisdiction.

Ekweremadu observed that the issues proposed in the bills were not within the list of things the National Assembly could legislate on, saying that it is the duty of the states to legislate on grazing reserves, ranches and control of movement of cattle in their various geographical enclaves.

The deputy senate president said, “issues at stake here are neither in the Exclusive list or in the Concurrent list. I believe therefore, it is a residual matter; it is for states to decide how to deal with it.

“I believe the matter here concerns everybody, given the level of carnage and the conflicts going on in different states; so I feel the concern of my colleagues but unfortunately we do not have powers to legislate on matters relating to livestock in this Assembly. It is a matter reserved for the states.

“So, I believe that both the bills for Kwankwaso, Gemade and Utazi are beyond the reach of this National Assembly and should be accordingly withdrawn so that the states under the constitution should be able to deal with the matters which the constitution has prescribed for them.

“I will like to see somebody to show me anywhere in the Exclusive list or Concurrent list that has given us powers to legislate on this matter because they are not in existence”, he concluded.

The Senate Leader who tried to persuade the Senate to allow the bills pass for second reading so that the relevant committees of the Senate could carry out a comprehensive legislative scrutiny on them and determine whether they could pass into law could not sell through.

Ndume failed to achieve this mission as the murmurings in the Chamber, particularly from the southern senators indicated that the proposals would end in the trash can, if they should be put to voice vote.

Ndume said, “I just want to join the DSP to explain. I just want to remind us of Order 81 and also appeal that we are the Senate. We should not allow any emotional or whatever this thing to guide us. The point that the DSP raised is a very important one.

“Number one, if we don’t have the power to make laws on these issues, I think there is no need to even start arguing on it. But having said that, if that is not even the case, our rule 81 talks in the order of the second reading of bills.

“A motion maybe made that the bill now be read the second time and a debate may arise covering the general merits and principles of the bill. We should hear them out on the merits”, he appealed.

In his remarks, the President of the Senate insisted that his earlier suggestion that the bills be withdrawn should be upheld, thereby asking Ndume to move that the bills be withdrawn.

He said, “before the point of order of Deputy Senate President, I had already put a suggestion that these bills came on the order paper based on the discussion I had with the two sponsors that these bills be consolidated.

“It is clear from the discussion today that it is not so and my view is that since the basis by which they came on the order paper has changed, the way forward is for us to step it down from the order paper of today. I will want the leader to move that we step it down from the order paper of today to another legislative day”.

As the contentious bill is been stepped down ,there are indication that the sponsor of the Grazing reserve Bill , former governor of Kano state , sen Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso may have gone back to the drawing board with a view to re presenting the bill.

This is even as those who put up a counter bill on ranches and restricting of movement of cattle and domestic animals are equally not leaving anything to chance.

As the controversy on whether to pass the Grazing reserve Biil and other related Bill rages , political pundits have expressed concern over the need for the National Assembly to rise above sentiments and primordial lines in exercising their legislative duties as enshrined in the constitution.

Political Analysts have warned against passing any law that will further divided the country , adding that the unity of the country is upper most in the aspiration of any group, interest or political party.