By Aaron Ossai
Kano State Caucus in the House of Representatives has stated that having professional advice and inputs from Lawyers to help them in their Constitutional duty of making laws for the country cannot be overemphasized.
The Caucus stated this at a meeting with members of the International Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA) Nigeria, Kano State Chapter at the House of Representatives, Abuja.
Hon. Alhassan Ado Doguwa who addressed the visiting female lawyers as the leader of the Kano and Northern Caucus in the House noted that despite their experience as members of the National Assembly whose primary responsibility is making laws, there is a gap which only a close working relationship with lawyers can fill to make their work easier.
“Those of us that are here, we are called lawmakers. But while we are making laws, definitely we will expect fine and brilliant brains like you to be helping us with some impudence. That is all.
“At all levels of legislation, we have a very critical point or window that we call public hearing. Apart from public hearing, members of the House also do have their constituency offices in their respective local governments.
“There are several other windows through which you can reach out to your representatives as professionals, especially legal professionals, and you will have a lot to contribute to our performance here as members representing the greater and the larger canon that we are representing in the House of Representatives.
“When we have brains like you who are experts and professionals in the legal sector of society that interfaces and also collaborates with the members of the Parliament, so that at the end, our critical duty and responsibility of lawmaking could be made to perfection.
“I have been in the House of Representatives for the past 34 years.I have been elected day in, day in, day out six times to the House of Representatives. But that does not make me the best of legislators. One, I am not a liar.
“Two, I am human. I cannot be perfect on my own 100%. My great gentleman that is sitting here before me has been elected to the House the fourth time now.
“He could have his own areas of excellence and performance, but there is that gap in us, and it is that gap of legal background that will expect men and women of your own profession to help us come and fill that gap.
“Today, you have come at a very coincidental period, a very incidental period, when the constitutional review process in the National Assembly is ongoing. So, we will expect you to start to use the opportunity from there*.
“I do this with all sense of humility and respect for the profession, but I charge you people to also promptly interface and continue to collaborate with this caucus by way of giving us some of your insight, how you look at some of the legislations. The PIB, for instance, which has now been passed into law in 2021, is now subject of a lot of contemplations and controversy. Look at the PIA.
“Where do you think we have gaps? Where do you think we’ll have to come and make contributions? Virtually all that you have in the body of the laws of the Federation, they are viewable. They are not cast on stones. So it is only on the basis of some of this kind of contribution that you give to us that we can be able to also make a contribution, he said.
Earlier, the Chairperson, FIDA, Kano State Chapter, Bar. Bilkisu Suleman informed the lawmakers that, FIDA is an international body of professional lawyers and legal professionals who offer free legal services to less privileged, other support services and advocacy.
She said, “All of us that are into FIDA will have our primary responsibilities, but we allocate some time within a week, within a month that we dedicate our services for the promotion of the rights of women and children. So I want everybody to understand that we are not charging for whatever services we are doing.”