National Assembly set to intervene in FG-ASUU face-off

House rejects police plan to introduce Biometric Central Motor Registration.

The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Aminu Tambuwal, gave indications that the National Assembly would be disposed to approving budgetary intervention in order to resolve the face-off between Federal Government and the Academic Staff Union of Nigeria Universities, ASUU.

ASUU has been on strike since July 1, following the failure of the government to meet their demands as enunciated in an agreement both parties entered into in 2009.

Receiving a brief from the House Committee on Education, led by its Chairman, Aminu Suleiman, the Speaker appealed to both government and the Union to sheathe their swords and resolve their differences in the interest of the nation and students.

Mr. Tambuwal said the National Assembly was prepared to offer budgetary intervention should the need arise in order to resolve the problems, which he said had lingered for too long.

"Let me use this opportunity to appeal to both the Executive arm and the authorities of ASUU to, please, quickly resolve the problem. And if there is need for any appropriation, the House will expeditiously assent to it in the interest of our students and the nation," the Speaker said.

Also on Thursday, the House mandated its Committees on Police Affairs, Federal Road Safety, and Justice to jointly investigate the desirability of the Biometric Central Motor Registration, BCMR, by the Nigeria Police Force, NPF.

This was sequel to a motion brought by a lawmaker, Hassan Saleh and 26 others, asking the lower legislative chamber to stop the police from introducing the BCMR.
The police had announced, recently, that it would introduce BCMR, which, according to it, would help in containing terrorism, kidnapping and car theft.

By its takeoff, all motorists, tricycle and motorcycle owners would be required to pay N3, 500 to the force.

Leading the debate on the motion, Mr. Saleh said that measures that would enhance security of lives and property ought to be welcomed, but noted that the police's latest venture was unnecessary.

He added that government owed Nigerians the sacred duty to protect them from any form of exploitation.

"While Nigerians are grappling with how to come to terms with the high cost of obtaining the new drivers licence and renew their old number plates whose cost is on the high side, the Nigerian Police pretends to be unaware that the FRSC is presently collating biometrics details of all motorists in the country," he said.

Adopting the motion, the lower legislative chamber expressed concern that the police were only seeking to duplicate what the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) was already doing.

Though it noted that the new policy was laudable, especially in the area of crime fighting, the House concluded that the police could not jæåustify its plan to commence the scheme.