House Transmits Bill to Increase Retirement Age of Judicial Officers

*Summons NERC, others over metering policy

Udora Orizu in Abuja

The House of Representatives has directed the National Assembly Clerk, Magaji Tambuwal to transmit a bill which approves a uniform retirement age for judicial officers to President Muhammadu Buhari for assent.

The constitutional bill is seeking to extend the retirement age of high court judges from 65 to 70 years.

The bill according to the lawmakers was part of 46 constitution alteration bills transmitted to States Houses of Assembly for concurrence in March last year.

The lawmakers urged Gombe, Jigawa, Kebbi, Kwara, Plateau and Taraba State Houses of Assembly that are yet to forward their resolution on the Bills to do so in fulfilment of their constitutionally imposed legislative obligation to the Constitution amendment process.

The passage followed the adoption of a motion entitled ‘Passage of Constitution (Fifth) Alteration Bill No. 20 (Uniform Retirement Age for Judicial Officers and Pension Rights) 2023,’ and sponsored by Hon. Idris Wase and 69 other lawmakers.

Presenting the motion, the minority leader, Hon. Ndudi Elumelu who’s one of the co-sponsor said, “Recalls that on 5 April, 2023 the Clerk to the National Assembly was directed to transmit Constitution (Fifth Alteration) Bill No. 47 that met the requirement of Section 9(2) of the Constitution to the President for his assent.

“Also recalls that the Houses of Assembly of Gombe, Jigawa, Kebbi, Kwara, Plateau, Sokoto and Taraba States that were yet to forward their resolutions were urged to do so in compliance with Constitutional obligation. Aware that Sokoto State House of Assembly has accordingly forwarded its resolution. Convinced that with the approval of Sokoto State House of Assembly, the Constitution (Fifth Alteration) Bill No 20 (Uniform Retirement Age for Judicial Officers and Pension Rights) has met the provisions of Section 9(2) of the Constitution, for passage.”

Also at the plenary, the lawmakers while adopting a motion sponsored by Hon. Ben Igbakpa resolved to invite Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission, (NERC) and Benin Electricity Distribution Company (BEDC ) to review their maximum demand metering and billing system on domestic end users, and stop same from applying to non commercial/ industrial end users.

They also said that DisCos should by the extant laws and regulations to provide metres for all electricity customers and  to put a final end to estimated billing.

They also said DisCos be mandated to energize donated transformers timeously, in order to prevent vandalization and to stop forthwith the unwholsome and illegal practice of compelling communities to pay before  transformers are energized.

Meanwhile the Deputy Speaker, Hon. Idris Wase who presided over the plenary session set up a conference committee on the prohibition of sexual harassment of students in universities.