Leadership (Abuja)
8 December 2011
President Goodluck Jonathan will on Dec. 13, present the 2012 budget estimates to the Joint session of the National Assembly.
This is contained in a letter sent by the President to both chambers of the National Assembly and read on the floor of the House by the Deputy Speaker Emeka Ihedioha.
President Jonathan presented a budget of N4.8 trillion for the 2010 fiscal year to the National Assembly on Dec. 15.
In another development, the House has mandated its Committee on Inter and Intra Party Relations to investigate the lack of internal democracy in political parties in Nigeria.
This resolution was sequel to a motion moved by Rep. Albert Sam-Tsokwa (PDP-Taraba), the chairman, House Committee on Rules and Business, which was unanimously adopted.
Leading the debate, Sam-Tsokwa noted that the practice of democracy in the country, lacked the required internal democracy in the various political parties.
He said that often times, political party leaders organised primaries in favour of their preferred candidates.
“The way and manner candidates are selected by our political parties for elective positions in some cases negates the principles of democracy,”he said.
According to him, if urgent steps are not taken to address the anomalies, the selection of candidates for elective offices will continue to be chaotic and crisis- ridden.
Rep.Friday Itulah (PDP-Edo) said that any democratic process usually begins at the party level.
Rep. Hassan El-Badawi (ANPP-Yobe) advised political parties to always ensure that there was internal democracy in their choice of candidates for elections.
Rep. Samson Osagie (ACN-Edo) , the Minority Whip, suggested that the matter should be addressed through constitutional and electoral amendments.
He said that most political parties often impose candidates on the people to satisfy particular persons or groups to the detriment of other party members.
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