Buba Commends Buhari, Gbajabiamila, Over Revamp of Foreign Affairs Ministry in 2022 Appropriations Act - Says New Law Empowers Ambassadors, Make Foreign Missions Effective

Daily Rendezvous

- Ranks 9th Assembly High on Performance, Legislative Diplomacy

The Chairman House Committee on Foreign Affairs, Rt. Hon.( Dr.) Yusuf Buba Yakub, has endorsed the 2022 Appropriations Act as forward-looking and a progressive movement for Nigerian Foreign Missions.

Yusuf Yakub Buba said, the 2022 Act has given Nigerian missions the Independence to carry out their duties without a recourse to ministerial approvals.

Buba explained that this improvement in the 2022 Act will go a long way in empowering Nigerian Ambassadors at post to spend funds appropriated as Capital Allocations in their Missions without seeking the extra approval of the Ministry headquarters in Abuja. 

Yakub Buba made this known in a press statement issued by his Special Adviser on Media and Public Affairs, Anya-Akpta Pius, and made available to Newsmen over the weekend.

Buba said, "The powers granted the Foreign Missions in the Act recently signed by Mr. President will among other positives, ensure that bureaucratic bottlenecks that impede development at the Missions are removed. 

"The new reform would make for quality progress in the activities of the nation's foreign service."

Speaking during an interactive session with National Assembly corespondents in Abuja, over the weekend, the lawmaker said that, "Monies the National Assembly, usually appropriates directly for the nation's Missions abroad as Capital Expenditure are meant for use for the procurement of official vehicles, buying and renovation of Embassy buildings, effecting repairs on dilapidated or decayed infrastructure, as well as, carrying out other projects captured under the capital component in the fiscal documents of each year."

He laments that, the bottlenecks has created situation where some of these projects were not usually implemented as a result of  the delay in approval from Nigeria.

"The National Assembly appropriates monies directly to the  Foreign Missions but before they spend the Capital Component of these funds they have to come back to Nigeria to get approval and most of the time there are too much delay. 

"Sometimes you would see Embassies that have funds in their Capital Accounts for about two and three years, but can not access or utilise such funds because of these delays. 

"So, the new Act has graciously given Embassies powers to spend their Capital Expenditure without seeking approval from Headquarters.

"That makes it easier for them if for instance,there is a storm and the roof of the Embassy building is blown off. Before now, the Ambassador would have to wait for approval from Nigeria before he could repair that roof. But with these powers given by the National Assembly in the 2022 Appropriations Act, the Ambassador can make approvals for the repair of that building without waiting for two weeks, one year, two years for approval before he can do that," Buba explained.

As part of efforts geared towards addressing the challenges the Committee on Foreign Affairs, the House committee had scheduled series of meetings with the Ministry where some rot were identified and most of these issues have been addressed.

Buba had specifically identified the general poor state of infrastructure and equipment at the Ministry headquarters, high debt profile and the incessant malpractices associated with the posting of foreign service officers as part of the challenges crippling the Ministry and the committee was quick to call for immediate address of these issues.

In addition to the above, the entrepreneur-turned-lawmaker, also added that the semester system for cash-backing appropriated funds at the nation's Foreign Missions was also adopted as part of the many reforms of Mr.President. He said all of these were carefully aimed at repositioning the Ministry and the Foreign Missions in line with global best practices and the Foreign Policy of the Buhari Administration.

Of particular significance in the towering achievements of the Buba Yakub led House Committee in the year under review was the repositioning of the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs ( NIIA) for greater relevance in the service of the country in the years ahead. 

The Buba led House committee had also hosted a major Conference on the review of Nigeria's Foreign Policy.

The lawmaker said, a Bill he personally sponsored, which has reached an advanced stage towards becoming a piece of legislation that will upgrade and broaden NIIA, beyond its current scope of operations but to also award academic certificates in the specialised areas of Diplomacy, Democracy and Foreign Affairs in general. 

The Conference for the review of the nation's Foreign Policy, is receiving legislative inputs of members of the Green Chambers of the National Assembly towards making greater impacts on how to reposition Nigeria in relating with other parts of the world and for greater respect for Nigeria in the comity of nations.

While cataloguing the impacts made by what he termed "Legislative Diplomacy", which is being furthered in the last two years by the Committee alongside the leadership of the House of Representatives led by  His Excellency, Femi Hakeem Gbajamiala, Speaker, House of Representatives, Buba said the results of wading into the diplomatic row between Nigeria and the United Arab Emirates ( UAE),the recurring maltreatment of Nigerians living in Ghana, including the infamous incursion into the premises of the Nigeria High Commission in Accra,Ghana, by a private Ghanaian company early last year, the xenophobic attacks in South Africa, as well as, the smear campaign carried out against a former Nigerian Head of State, Gen. Yakubu Gowon, by a Member of the the British Parliament, have all become a big plus that has signposted the degree of performance of the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Rep.

The Gbajamiala-led 9th House of Representatives has done much in its several oversight visits to the nation's Missions abroad, the enhanced image of Nigerians in the global community and the Committee's interventions in improving services for Nigerians in the Diaspora and visitors to our country, especially in the areas of Consular services and passport renewal by Nigerians abroad.