ECOWAS Parliament commits to Regional Peace, Prosperity
By: Adoba Echono, Abuja
The Acting Speaker of the Economic Community of West African States, ECOWAS, Parliament, Jibrin Barau, who is also the Deputy President of the Nigerian Senate, has reiterated the commitment of the parliament to the regional peace and prosperity.
Senator Barau, who is the First Deputy Speaker of the Community Parliament is acting Speaker in the absence of the Togolese delegation which is supposed to produce the Speaker, stated this at the closing of the Inaugural Session of the Sixth Legislature of the Community Parliament in Abuja, Nigeria.
He said the Community will be counting on Members of the Parliament for quality representation, effective presence, passion, dedication, and commitment to achieving the objective of making the region an ECOWAS of peoples where peace and prosperity reign for all.
Senator Barau said: “Our responsibilities are heavy, and we must be aware of them and remain totally faithful to our commitments. That’s why we need to work together with intelligence, rigour, and determination to meet the major challenges that lie ahead.
“As you can see, Honourable Members, the mission we have been assigned is enormous but very exciting because it involves putting ourselves at the service of the community to ensure its prosperity and emergence.
Senator Barau, also used the opportunity to explained how the doctrine of necessity restored order to the regional parliament.
He recalled that an integral part of the events that should have characterized the inaugural session of the Parliament, which was the election of the Speaker, did not happen due to the absence of the Togolese delegation who, by virtue of the Supplementary Act, should assume the speakership of the 6th Legislature.
“I seize this opportunity to express our solidarity with the Togolese delegation and pledge the full support of this Parliament in insuring that the Togolese Representatives are inaugurated as soon as possible, which will ultimately lead to the election of new Speaker.
“Nevertheless, I extol the wisdom of this house and the processes that led to the election of the Four Honourable Deputy Speakers. The application of the Doctrine of Necessity was necessary to restore order to this house and uphold the sanctity of our cherished institution,” Barau said.
Senator Barau also thanked all the Members of the Community Parliament for supporting the process to the fullest.
“The action taken by this Parliament marks the beginning of what I foresee to be a united Parliament that speaks with one voice in the interest of our community”.
Senator Barau further congratulated the selection committee, which worked hard to establish fourteen standing committees that were concise and balanced in language, gender, and nationality.
“Congratulations also to the Committee on Drafting the Rules of Procedure of the Sixth Legislature, which will be our guide and guard for this new era.
“Our responsibilities are heavy, and we must be aware of them and remain totally faithful to our commitments. That’s why we need to work together with intelligence, rigour, and determination to meet the major challenges that lie ahead,” Barau stated.
“As you well know, we have deliberately chosen to be on this front. So, let’s join forces beyond our differences to remain true to our commitments and make history with our term of office.
Therefore, let us work resolutely to produce concrete and valuable results for ECOWAS,” Barau further said.
The parliament, however, stepped down on adoption of the report of the adhoc committee on Drafting the Rules of procedure for the sixth legislature opting to continue with rules of the fifth Legislature pending when they have scrutinised and agreed on the draft.
The Sixth legislature of the ECOWAS Parliament was inaugurated by President Bola Tinubu of Nigeria who is the current Chairman of the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government.
Hauwa M.
