The Joint Committee of the House of Representatives is investigating the price increase in cement and has warned the Cement Manufactures Association of Nigeria from doing anything to interfere with the investigation.
The Joint Committee has also warned the Association to stop using court orders to hinder the committee’s investigation into why the price of cement is so high.
A warning has been passed to get the association as other key stakeholders by the Chairman of the Joint Committee, Hon. (ESV) Gaza Jonathan Gbwefi, during an open remark at the investigating hearing at the National Assembly on Monday.
At the hearing, the chairman said that the Cement Manufacturers’ continuous absence, who were summoned by the committee twice but refused to appear in court, is an affront to the power of the National Assembly, Section 88 of the 1999 Constitution, and Sections 4 and 7 of the Legislative Houses of Power and privileged Act.
The Chairman of the Committee also stated that the letter refers to the court rulings of the Federal High Court (FHC/ABJ/CS/458/2012) currently being reviewed by the Supreme Court under SC/458/2017.
In his words, he said: “I want to first underline that these rulings are about a separate hearing conducted in the 9th Assembly by the House Committee on Labour and Productivity and the House Committee on Interior.
“As such, this is the preceding ruling of the Supreme Court. It is equally to address the flagrant misuse of the judiciary to delay, interrupt or interfere with the legislative process.
“NECA attempts to use its association and membership to cast an umbrella of impunity, which is a direct affront to the Nigerian people and its government.”
At the hearing, the Council for Regulating of Engineering Nigeria (COREN) were invited The Nigerian Building and Road Research Institute (NIBRID) and the Federal Competition and Consumers Protection Council (FCCPC) were invited to investigate the arbitrary increase in cement prices.
Some committee members also asked the agency about the reasons behind the increase in the price of cement.
The Chairman of the House joint committee, Hon.Gaza, was angry at the representative of the CEO of the FCCPC, Ms. Boladale Adeyinka, for not exercising more authority in protecting cement consumers.
The Chairman also asked the agency to go back and rework and return with a four-page document that will be submitted to the House joint committee for further investigation on the increment in the price of cement.
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