Abia State House of Assembly Plenary for Wednesday, 8th December, 2021

Welcome to another Legislative Day in the 7th Abia State House of Assembly.

The Speaker, Rt Hon Engr Chinedum Enyinnaya Orji led Principal Officers into the hallowed chamber.

Hon Ginger Onwusibe, Member representing Isiala Ngwa North State Constituency led the opening prayer.

The Abia State House of Assembly commenced plenary after the adoption of Votes and Proceedings of Wednesday 1st, December, 2021.

MATTER OF URGENT PUBLIC IMPORTANCE

Hon Kelechi Onuzuruike, Member representing Umuahia North State Constituency and Chairman, House Committee on Environment, brought up a Matter of Urgent Public Importance wherein he bemoaned the state of the environment in some areas of the state particularly as it relates to the indiscriminate dumping of refuse in the State.

He said some streets and roads in the State capital and Aba have been taken over by refuse and emphasised that refuse in Umuahia has become an eyesore which made him have an interface with the General Manager of Abia State Environmental Protection Agency.

Hon Kelechi Onuzuruike said the General Manager disclosed to him that the agency has only one functional Excavator and one roll-on truck, and that the agency spends over N1.3m every month to hire other equipment needed for the excavation of refuse.

Hon Kelechi further said that the General Manager said the agency have some equipment in their custody but cannot make use of them because they have not been paid for in full by the State Government. The lawmaker therefore prayed that the Executive Arm of Government pay for those new trucks so the agency can effectively do their job.

RESOLUTION

After contributions to the matter from members, the Speaker, Rt Hon Engr Chinedum Enyinnaya Orji asked the Chairman House Committee on Environment to summon the General Manager of Abia State Environmental Protection Agency to appear before the committee and furnish it with more facts on the situation and efforts made so far by the agency to improve the process.

The House Committee on Environment is to report back to the House on Monday, 13th December, 2021.

ORDER OF THE DAY

H.A.B. 49 : The Abia State Second Supplementary Appropriation Bill, 2021.

A Bill for a Law to make further Supplementary Provisions of the sum of N18,925,403,929 (Eighteen Billion, Nine Hundred and Twenty Five Million, Four Hundred and Three Thousand, Nine Hundred and Twenty Nine Naira only), for the services of the Government of Abia State of Nigeria for the year ending 31st Day of December, 2021.

The Speaker committed the Bill to the House Committee on Appropriation to make the necessary inputs and revert back to the House on the next Legislative Day.

Other items on the Order Paper were deferred to be considered on another Legislative Day.

ADJOURNMENT

Hon Paul Taribo, Deputy Majority Leader of the House, moved that plenary be adjourned to another Legislative Day.

The Minority Leader, Hon Chijioke Chukwu seconded the motion.

Plenary was therefore adjourned to Thursday, 9th December, 2021.

Courtesy: Media Unit, Office of the Rt Hon Speaker, Abia State House of Assembly.