- The House of Representatives has urged the Federal Government to suspend the implementation of the Samoa Agreement.
- The House resolution was made following a motion of urgent public importance brought by the Minority Leader, Aliyu Madaki, and 87 others.
- The House directed its Committee on National Planning to investigate the agreement within four weeks and report back for further legislative action.
Newsypeople– The House of Representatives asked the Federal Government to stop putting into action the Samoa Agreement because it supposedly has an “LGBTQ+ clause.” This decision came after a motion was made by the Minority Leader, Aliyu Madaki, and 87 other members during their meeting on Tuesday.
The House gave orders to its Committee on National Planning to look into the agreement and come back with findings in four weeks for more legislative steps. The Samoa Agreement is the main legal document that guides how the European Union deals with 79 countries, which include 48 from Africa, 16 from the Caribbean, and 15 from the Pacific regions.
Last week, one national newspaper said there is a paper with rule to make same-sex relationships legal in Nigeria. But the Federal Government say this not true, and they have laws already against same-sex relationships. They also warned that they might take legal steps against the news company for saying this thing.
The House said that the agreement should not be put into action until all disputed parts are fixed and clearly explained.
Ghali Tijani from Kano agreed with this idea, saying the House should completely reject the Samoa Agreement. On the other hand, Bello Kumo, who is a key member of the majority group, suggested that the federal government cancel signing it and say sorry to Nigerians.
Kingsley Chinda, who is the minority leader and also helped to present the motion, stressed that their aim was not to approve or condemn the agreement. Instead, they wanted an investigation. He pointed out that lawmakers were not given enough information or included in discussions before signing the agreement.
The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, explained that the federal government made sure the agreement does not go against the 1999 Constitution (with changes) or other current laws. He mentioned that this agreement is only about economic growth and has no clauses related to same-sex marriage.
See the news below…
𝐉𝐔𝐒𝐓 𝐈𝐍: 𝐒𝐮𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐝 𝐒𝐚𝐦𝐨𝐚 𝐚𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧, 𝐑𝐞𝐩𝐬 𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐥 𝐅𝐆https://t.co/kIXdsYF4Rq
— Punch Newspapers (@MobilePunch) July 9, 2024
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