January 20, (THEWILL) – The Nigerian Governors’ Forum (NGF) on Thursday commended the Nigerian Senate for re-amending the Electoral Act Amendment Bill and providing room for direct, indirect, and consensus options for nominating candidates for the various political parties in the country.
The Forum in communique issued at the end of its meeting on Thursday in Abuja, commended the Senate for amending clause 84 regarding the mode of candidate selection in the Electoral Act Amendment Bill and urged the House of Representatives to do the same by adding the consensus clause.
According to the communique, signed by the Chairman of the Forum and governor of Ekiti State, Kayode Fayemi, the governors also discussed issues regarding the nation’s security challenges, health, food security, among others.
Concerning fuel subsidy removal, the Forum “concluded to engage the leadership of the Nigerian Labour Congress and the Trade Union Congress on how best to address this issue without causing any disaffection or with the view to savaging the Nigerian economy for the Nigerian people at the end of the day.
“So, we shall be engaging the Nigerian Labour Congress as sub-national leaders with the view to ensuring that the outcome of our engagement will also be fed into the national discuss,” the statement said.
The governors “Also discussed the health update particularly in relation to COVID-19 infections and expressed happiness that the current Omicron variant has been declining progressively. However, we also noted that there is the need for States led by us to ramp up the COVID-19 vaccination exercise.
“On Nutrition which remains a priority of the Government, Governors concluded that there is a need to increase our support in terms of budgetary provisions for nutrition.”
Fayemi disclosed that the governors received a presentation from the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC) on Ease of Doing Business.
He said that the governors at the meeting discussed the next phase of ease of doing business survey with the Special Adviser to the President on Ease of Doing Business, Dr Jumoke Oduwole and the World Bank Country Director for Nigeria Shubham Chaudhuri.
“The presentation elaborated on the need to step up the reforms towards improving the investments and business climate at the sub national level.
“Governors also reviewed the recently launched National Development Plan 2021 to 2025.
“This is with a view to ensuring that the National Development Plan is aligned to individual state development plans that have been produced or in the process of being produced to ensure synergy between the development efforts by the Federal as well as state governments”, he said.
Governors at the meeting include the NGF Chairman, Kayode Fayemi; Kano State Governor Abdullahi Ganduje; Nasarawa Governor Abdullahi Sule; Anambra Governor Willie Obiano; Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde and Osun State Governor Gboyeba Oyetola.
Also at the meeting are Deputy Governors of Gombe; Yobe; Enugu; Bauchi; Lagos; Ondo; Benue; Katsina; Rivers; and Kogi.
It is the first meeting of the forum in the year 2022.
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