| Popis: |
This chapter probed the effectiveness of the oversight functions of the National Assembly in Nigeria between 1999 and 2019. It showed that since the birth of the Fourth Republic in 1999, legislative oversight had been a useful instrument for checking the excesses of the executive and its agencies as well as monitoring the activities of government as a whole. It was used at different times to request government agencies for information and clarification of policies as well as investigation of infractions of public trust and led to the reversal of some unpopular policies as well as recovering of funds found to have been wrongly appropriated. However, the study observed that the oversight function of the legislature had been hampered by alleged cases of corruption in the legislature, shallow democratic culture, undue interference in the activities of the legislature by individuals and groups outside the legislature, alleged encroachment on the powers of other arms of government and inadequate funding of the legislative committees, among others. It concluded that effective legislative oversight in Nigeria requires the active involvement of non-state actors and agencies, strengthening of the committee system in the legislature, proper funding and orientation about parliamentary procedures for legislators. |
