The Senate at plenary on Wednesday passed 46 bills earlier passed by the House of Representatives on a single day.
While the entire Senate session lasted less than five hours, the lawmakers used about 10 minutes to pass the bills.
The decision followed a motion moved by the Chairman, Senate Committee on Rules and Business, Ita Enang (APC-Akwa Ibom North-East) and supported by eight others.
The Senate equally approved President Muhammadu Buhari’s request to appoint 15 special advisers.
Mr. Enang, in the motion, called on the Senate to invoke Order 1 (b) of the Senate Standing Order to adopt a special procedure on the bills.
He explained that the motion was based on “mutual consent” and “legislative reciprocities”, as the House of Representatives was adopting a similar special procedure on bills transmitted by the Senate for concurrence.
Mr. Enang called for the suspension of Order 79 (1) of the Senate Standing Order, which stipulates that all bills should go through first, second and third readings before passage.
The passage of the bills led to a rowdy session, as some senators objected to the procedure adopted.
Reacting to the objection, the President of the Senate, David Mark, asked those opposed to the passage to present a substantive motion at Thursday’s plenary.
“I have ruled. If you disagree, you come back with a substantive motion tomorrow,” Mr. Mark said.
Some of the bills passed are Office of the Nigerian Financial Ombudsman Bill, 2015; Institute of Chartered Trustees of Nigeria Bill, 2015 and People’s Bank of Nigeria Act (Repeal) Bill, 2015.
Others are Nigerian Bank for Commerce and Industry Act (Repeal) Bill, 2015; Federal Saving Bank Act (Repeal) Bill, 2015; Loan (State Development) Act (Repeal) Bill, 2015; Chartered Institute of Statisticians of Nigeria Bill, 2015 and Nigerian Metallurgical Industry Bill, 2015.
The Senate also passed Federal Audit Commission Bill, 2015; Treasury Management Bill, 2015; Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Act 2010 (Amendment) Bill, 2015 and Investment, Securities (Amendment) Bill, 2015 among others.
Meanwhile, the Leader of the Senate, Victor Ndoma-Egba, said that the Senate would consider the amendment to the 1999 Constitution (as amended) at Thursday’s plenary.
The Senate, thereafter, adjourned plenary to Thursday when it would hold a valedictory session to mark the end of the 7th Senate.
The Senate passed the 46 bills just a day before the end of its four-year term.
The National Assembly has faced criticism over its poor performance despite taking a huge part of government budget.
The National Assembly has spent N600 billion in four years but managed to pass only about 106 within the period.
(NAN)
