Senate reassures on national unity

The President of Senate, Dr Bukola Saraki, has reassured of the National Assembly’s (NASS) commitment to ensuring that all Nigerians live in peace without fear or intimidation.

Saraki said this in a paper presented at the 13th All Nigeria Editors’ Conference and Extraordinary Convention on Friday in Port Harcourt.

He spoke on the theme: “Legislative Efforts and Focus on Pro-poor Issues: National Assembly Perspectives’’.

Represented by Sen. Aliyu Abdullahi, Chairman, Senate Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Saraki also assured that the NASS was alive and sensitive to its constitutional responsibilities and roles.

He said that the national assembly would continue to create the enabling environment to produce “the greatest access to opportunity in a united and prosperous nation’’ for generations yet unborn.

The president of the senate commended the editors “for the new path and direction’’ the forum had was carving for the journalism profession.

According to him, the media and indeed all Nigerian media is deeply involved in standing up against autocracy in whatever guise, a position shared by the Nigerian legislature.

He also listed efforts made by the Senate and NASS in general in shaping national development challenges in what he called very interesting time in Nigeria.

He said that the senate had considered more than 200 motions to date, while the senate received 150 public petitions and cleared 90 as against six petitions each by the seventh and sixth senate.

He said: “Interestingly, many of the issues cleared seek to relief Nigerians from bad policies, unjust decisions and actions that could further worsen the hardship of Nigerians.’’

Our correspondent reports that the theme for the 2017 conference is “Nigerian Media: Balancing Professionalism, Advocacy and Business’’.