Abuja – Attempt to begin consideration of the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) was stalled on Tuesday as many senators opposed the continuation of reading of the bill.
While Sen. Tayo Alasoadura (APC Ondo Central) was reading provisions of the bill, many of the senators murmured, saying that they did not receive their copies of the bill.
Consequently, the Minority Leader of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, coming under a point of order, urged that the reading of the bill be discontinued.
He said that without copies of the bill, they could not contribute effectively to the debate and urged that the consideration of the bill be suspended to another legislative day.
“I believe that we are discussing about the mainstay of the economy of Nigeria since 1960, the Petroleum Industry Bill is such an important bill that will affect people suffering in this country.
“It is not the kind of bill that we can stay here and gloss over and then allow somebody to do a lead debate without senators having the bill in their hands.
“It is something we must study and come and make our own inputs, because we have to make sure that the bill is properly debated for the president to sign it into law.
“I think it is an exercise in futility for my brother to do a lead debate when the bill is not circulated to senators,” he said.
The President of the Senate, Bukola Saraki, therefore, ruled that the bill be stepped down to another legislative day; but stressed that from his records, the law makers were given the bill last Thursday.
“I am sure, in order to give them time to retrieve what was distributed on Thursday, we would step it down so that they can go and get the document that was distributed.
“So, please ensure that the bill that has been distributed on Thursday is brought and we will now put it before the next debate,” he said. (NAN)
