The Lagos State House of Assembly on Thursday, passed a Bill for a Law to establish the Institute of Legislative Studies and Research in the state.

The House passed the bill following a third reading by the Acting Clerk of the House, Mr. Olalekan Onafeko.

Onafeko noted that the bill was in consideration of the state’s version of the Institute of Legislative Studies as being established at the national level.

He said with the passage, the proposed Institute of Legislative Studies in the state would become the first in the country to be backed by law.

Presiding over the plenary, the Deputy Speaker, Mr. Wasiu Eshinlokun-Sanni said the bill was sponsored by the Speaker of the House, Mr. Mudashiru Obasa.

Eshinlokun-Sanni said the bill sought to show that the proposed institute would be charged with the responsibility of conducting quality academic and professional research.

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According to him, other benefits are the training and advocacy on democratic governance, legislative practices, procedures, and connected purposes.

“The institute will act as a center of excellence for research and publication on democratic governance and be a center for continuing education on democracy and legislation.

“Among other functions, the institute is to conduct courses for all categories of legislative officers and the support staff with a view to expanding their overall knowledge and performance in different sections of service;

“It will also provide continuing education for all categories of legislative officers by undertaking, organizing, conducting, and facilitating studies, courses, lectures, seminars, and other programs related to legislative education.

“The bill promises to also promote and disseminate among legislative assemblies and local governments in the state the practice of science-based methodologies of lawmaking,” he said.

Eshinlokun-Sanni then asked the acting clerk to send the clean copy of the bill to the state governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu for assent.

In May 2021 at the bill’s public hearing, Director, National Institute of Legislative and Democratic Studies, Dr. Shuaib Danwaka had said that the institute would provide training for lawmakers and legislative staff.

Danwaka, who was the guest speaker at the event, commended the assembly for following in the footsteps of the Federal Government while arguing that democracy could only be sustained through capacity development.

“The bill is to establish the institute that will provide capacity so that the assembly will be able to discharge its duties of lawmaking and oversight.

“The duties of the legislature cannot be discharged without capacity, so with the institute, the capacity of the legislature and staff is guaranteed.

“This I believe will go beyond Lagos and Nigeria,” he said while noting some parts of the bill that should be considered.”

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Like Danwaka, Prof. Sylvester Akhaine, a Nigerian activist and academic, supported the bill, but noted areas that could be reviewed.

Meanwhile, the house also screened two nominees from the governor.

The nominees were Mr. Sikiru Salami for Permanent Secretary/State Auditor-General and Mr. Ogunlana Musa for Permanent Secretary/Auditor-General, Unified Local Government Services.