National Assembly to present harmonised PIB next week

Tired of endlessly waiting for President Muhammadu Buhari to send a new draft of the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) to the National Assembly, the federal legislature has taken the bold step to independently initiate the bill towards its prompt passage.

Against this background, the National Assembly had designed its own version of the bill ahead of the formal presentation of its harmonised version before each chamber of the National Assembly next week.

Making this disclosure in his opening remark at a-one-day National Assembly Business Environment Roundtable held in the National Assembly yesterday, Senate President Bukola Saraki said both the Senate and House of Representatives had resolved to jointly re-draft the bill.

“The National Assembly – the Senate and the House of Representatives – are working very closely together. As part of this commitment, we would all see next week when we lay down the PIB. You will see that the bill we are going to lay in each house is the same. We are going to lay the same version in the Senate and the House of Representatives because that is going to be the first time we are open to our words,” Saraki said.

Saraki regretted the country’s harsh economic environment, observing that most of the laws regulating business operations in Nigeria were obsolete.

Participants at the round table discussion were drawn from the executive, legislature and the private sector who came together to brainstorm on possible solutions to the nation’s teething economic problems.

He explained the rationale behind the roundtable conference, saying it was meant to serve as the platform for the assessment and improvement of legislations and policies affecting business operations in Nigeria.

He said discussions would be “centred on broad areas like competition; doing business; infrastructure (Public-Private Partnerships, rail, maritime and roads); finance and investment; intellectual property and e-business; and taxation among others.”

Saraki added that the roundtable discussion would also serve as a veritable platform for the private sector, legislature and the executive to engage one another in the search for relevant and sound public policy.

“The National Assembly Business Environment Roundtable hopes to achieve a number of specific objectives, including: Legislative reform as it pertains to improving the business environment in Nigeria; strengthening the foundation of the Nigerian economy by ensuring smart and effective regulation.

“Increasing competitiveness and private sector investment; opening and expanding markets through infrastructure development; and, creating engagement, advocacy and consultation across key stakeholders,” he added.

  

In his submission, Head of Economic Growth, Department for International Department (DFID) Nigeria, Simon Kenny, pointed out that the main economic crisis confronting the country was its over-dependence on oil revenue which he said had continued to nosedive in the last two years.

However, he said the drastic fall in prices of petroleum products had provided Nigeria with the full fledged opportunity to diversify its economy, noting that revenues from oil could no longer meet the rising needs of Nigeria’s huge population.
He also advised the federal government to promote import competitiveness in contrast to import substitution as he advocated the necessity for private sector to be involved in the move to boost such competition.

Kenny said: “If you look at the demands of oil produced in Nigeria and the low price of oil, and if you divide that by the vast numbers of people and population of Nigeria, there is only around $200 of oil pa capital per year in the country.

“There is no way even the rising price of oil can raise Nigeria to anything above a middle income country. And I know that the aspirations of Nigeria have gone beyond that to become a high level income country. So, oil revenue has dropped and this is the reality you are facing at the moment. But the low prices of oil has offered a perfect opportunity for Nigeria to diversify the economy, to increase investment and to make industries – from agriculture to manufacturing and the services sector.

“I often hear the term import substitution as a policy for Nigerian government to help drive local industries. You need to replace the word import substitution by import competitiveness. And the role of the private sector to help increase that competitiveness.

“It’s a fantastic opportunity to bring the private sector together with the government. The executive is there to implement policies but the legislature has a key role in ensuring that the right legal framework is in place.”

Also speaking at the conference, Chairman of Heir Holdings, Mr. Tony Elumelu, canvassed the urgent need for the National Assembly to review the laws regulating business activities in Nigeria, noting that the flaws inherent in such laws have made their reviews imperative

“This meeting is an effort and is humble acknowledgement by our leaders that our laws are not perfect; that we need to review, amend and enhance many of them.”

He challenged the federal government to live up to its responsibility by creating business friendly environment for entrepreneurs to operate.

“The important role of government is not to provide employment for everyone but to create, sustain and secure an enabling environment for citizens who dependently create their own jobs as their success using their own talents. The private sector is the engine room for economic growth in Nigeria and indeed anywhere else,” Elumelu said.