By Eric Ugbor
ABA — CHAIRMAN, Aba branch of Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, Mr. Chidozie Ogunji, has called for a reduction in the membership of the National Assembly as well as certain political offices to check the rising cost of governance.
In a chat with newsmen on some of the recommendations of the national confab, Ogunji lamented that funds which could have been used to pursue projects were now diverted to service political office holders, stressing that such was not in the best interest of the country.
He said: “The truth must be told, governance has turned into a multi-billion naira enterprise in Nigeria. Something must be done about the problem of high cost of governance.
“I’m of the opinion that the number of political offices must be reduced to free up funds for projects. Look at the state of our roads and other infrastructure; the funds we use to settle political office holders could have been used to address this problem.
“What has a country like Nigeria got to do with as many as over 40 ministers? The federal cabinet must be reduced to a more manageable size. If you look at the size of our National Assembly, it is unwieldy.
“Let the two chambers be retained but with a reduced number. For the Senate, it should be reduced to two members from each state, while the House of Representatives can be cut down to five members per state.
Vanguard