Bills to Exclude Para-military from CPS, Regulate Name Change Scale Second Reading

• House urges IG, FRSC to curb excesses of bullion van drivers, police escorts
James Emejo in Abuja
A bill seeking for an Act to amend the Pension Reform Act, 2014, to exclude members of the Nigeria Police, the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps and Nigeria Customs Service (NSCDC) from the application of the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS) and for other related matters passed its seconding reading on the floor of the House of Representatives on Tuesday.

The bill, sponsored by Hon. Oluwole Oke is also seeking to exempt the Nigerian Prison Service (NPS), Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) and we’ll as the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) from the CPS.

Also,  a bill moved by Hon. Gyang Istifanus Dung seeking for an Act to provide for the regulation and prohibition of arbitrary change of name in Nigeria and, in exceptional cases, provide for the procedure to change name in Nigeria, offences and penalties for violation and for other related matters passed seconding reading on the House floor.

Nevertheless, the House further passed a resolution
calling on the Inspector General of Police and the Corps Marshal of the FRSC to work together and put in place measures that will regulate the conduct of bullion van drivers and their police escorts to stem the violations of traffic rules and regulations and stop the harassments of motorists on the roads.

The lawmakers had noted with concern the high rate of disruption of the flow of traffic and accidents occasioned by the reckless attitude of bullion van drivers and their police escorts on the roads.

In a motion sponsored by Hon. Segun Adekola Alexander on need to check the reckless conduct of bullion van drivers and their police escorts on the roads, the House further mandated the Committees on Police Affairs, and FRSC to ensure implementation and report back within six weeks for further legislative action.

The lawmakers particularly cited the incident of  February 14,  2017, when a painter, Mr. Eze Akpan was killed by stray bullets from a police team escorting a bullion van in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.

It held that incidents of this nature were becoming daily occurrences on the roads with motorists either being shoved off the road or crashed into, at times resulting in death or maiming, due to the excessive speed or dangerous maneuvering tactics of the bullion van drivers or stray bullets from their police escorts.

The legislators said in the process of transporting cash and valuables from one location to the other, policemen escorting the vans take the laws into their hands, harassing, molesting and intimidating other road users into panicky motoring decisions.