Nigerians prefer bags of rice to legislative bills – Reps member, Hon Onyema

Deputy Minority Leader of the House of Representatives, Hon Chukwuka Onyema, says Nigerians prefer lawmakers that give them bags of rice and money, than those who sponsor and pass legislative bills.

He described the act as unfortunate, saying it was totally wrong and must be corrected.

He said this on Friday at a round-table conference organised by the House Committee on Civil Societies and Development Partners, where he represented the Speaker of the House of Reps, Hon. Yakubu Dogara.

Onyema decried that people were more concerned about material things they stand to gain from their Representatives, than the quality of Bills being passed by the National Assembly.

He said, “Nigerians want you to go and steal all the money in the world and come and give them, then you have done well. But even if you pass over 100 legislative Bills, to them you have not done well.

“That is very wrong. We have to get it right. For instance, if you go to your constituency and tell them I did this and that at the parliament, they will just be looking at you, like what is this one saying.

“But if you tell them I gave this and that scholarship, or there are bags of rice outside to be shared, they will applaud you that you have done well.

“This is totally wrong and must be corrected. That is not our work. I think it is high time we started realising some of these things. This is why I think this kind of forum is very very important,”