Bauchi Assembly splits over bill to merge Radio,Television Organisations.
Bauchi Assembly splits over bill to merge Radio,Television Organisations.
By Ahmed Ahmed
Members of Bauchi state house of assembly divided as they engaged in heated arguments over the bill to repeal the Bauchi state Television BATV and Bauchi Radio Corporation law to merge the Organizations as Bauchi state Broadcasting services.
Members at the plenary disagreed over the bill during the debate.
The heated debate that erupted some of the assembly members failed to agree on the recommendations of the committee on information which took them months to travel out to Kano ,Kaduna Plateau states.
Members in support insist that the bill should be listed and passed looking at the importance of the bill.
The chairman of the committee Gazali Abubakar wunti said the committee has done all that is needed in its report, hoping that the lawmakers would do justice to the committee’s recommendations and findings.
“The merger of the two organisations is not ripe,there are things supposed to put in place before.
“We had a robust discussions with the stakeholders in but those retired and those on active service we made to understand that merging the broadcast is not healthy for now,” he said
The speaker of the assembly Mr Abubakar Sulaiman has Suspended the bill to repeal the merger of the state broadcast organisations till further notice.
According to him, the suspension became necessary to allow the lawmakers have more information and understand the committee’s findings and observations.
“In respect of its visitations to Plateau and Sokoto states as well as Town hall meetings with information and communication stakeholders on the intended BATV/ BRC merger law.
Sulaiman said the state Assembly would look into the committee’s recommendations and make legislative amendments for effective passage of the proposed bill.
Meanwhile,The leader of the state House of Assembly Tijjani Muhammad Aliyu announced that the assembly would recess from first January to Second February 2021.
