Tajudeen Abbas, Speaker of the House of Representatives, has announced a minor reshuffle in the leadership of some committees within the Green Chamber.
During Wednesday’s plenary session, Abbas reassigned Mike Etaba, who represents the Obubra/Etung Federal Constituency in Cross River State, from his position as chair of the Committee on Public Petitions to head the Committee on Environment.
Bitrus Laori, the representative from Adamawa State and former chair of the Committee on Cooperation and Integration in Africa, will now lead the Committee on Public Petitions.
Meanwhile, Billy Osawaru, a lawmaker from Edo State who previously served as the deputy chair of the Committee on Poverty Alleviation, has been appointed to chair the Committee on Cooperation and Integration in Africa.
Etaba’s redeployment comes shortly after the Committee on Public Petitions summoned Benue State Governor Hyacinth Alia and Zamfara State Governor Dauda Lawal over ongoing political crises in their respective state legislatures.
The committee also invited the speakers and leadership of both state assemblies.
These summonses followed a petition by a civil society organisation, the Guardians of Democracy and Rule of Law.
The committee demanded that the governors and assembly leaders explain why the House of Representatives should not assume legislative functions in their states.
The investigative hearing was scheduled for May 8. However, both governors rejected the summons, arguing that the federal legislature lacks the authority to summon state governors.
Several civil society organisations also opposed the move, asserting that governors are constitutionally protected by immunity and are accountable only to their state legislatures.
On Wednesday, the Conference of Speakers of State Legislatures of Nigeria also criticised the summons.
The chairman, Adebo Ogundoyin, described the action as an overreach of constitutional powers and a direct affront to the federal structure and independence of state legislatures.
He noted that the National Assembly’s oversight authority under Sections 88 and 89 of the Constitution is limited to federal matters and does not extend to internal issues within state legislatures unless a clearly defined constitutional or federal issue is at stake.
