Insurance Industry Consolidated Bill Misses Presidential Assent As Buhari Signs 8 Bills Into Law
President Muhammadu Buhari of Nigeria
The Insurance Industry Consolidated Bill has failed to receive Presidential assent as President Muhamadu Buhari on Monday signed eight Bills into law.
The Insurance Industry Consolidated Bill was waiting Presidential assent having passed through the two Houses.
There were high expectations in the industry that the Bill will be signed into law before the end of the 9th Assembly.
It would be recalled that the Chairman of the Nigerian Insurers Association, Mr Segun Omosehin, had, during a media briefing in Lagos, said the Consolidated Insurance Bill was going through the final legislative process to get the presidential assent.
According to him, the process for reviewing the Insurance Act 2003 has been ongoing since 2020 when the Consolidated Insurance Bill was proposed.
“Since then, we have been following through with all the processes and I am indeed delighted to inform you the Bill has been passed. It is going through the remaining legislative procedures preparatory to the Presidential accent.
“We are hopeful that it will receive speedy attention so that the industry can begin to tap into the opportunities provided by the new law,” Omosehin said.
But unfortunately, on Monday when President Buhari assented to eight Bills passed by the 9th National Assembly, the Insurance Industry Consolidated Bill was not among the Bills presented to the President for assent.
The Senior Special Assistant to the President on National Assembly Matters (Senate), Senator Babajide Omoworare, in a statement in Abuja said the action of the President was in accordance with the provisions of the Acts Authentication Act Cap. A2, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.
He listed the new laws including the National Social Investment Programme Agency Act, National Senior Secondary Education Act and the National Social Investment Programme Agency Act.
The President also assented to the Federal University of Health Sciences Ila-Orangun (Establishment) Act, Federal University of Health Sciences, Azare (Establishment) Act, Chartered Institute of Development Studies and Administration of Nigeria (Establishment) Act, Federal Institute of Industrial Research (Establishment) Act, and the Institute of Strategic Management of Nigeria Act, respectively.
Omoworare said that the National Social Investment Programme Agency was established to assist and empower the poor and vulnerable in Nigeria, while the National Senior Secondary Education Act, prescribes minimum standards for senior secondary education in Nigeria and the management of the National Senior Secondary Education Fund.
The Chartered Institute of Power Engineers of Nigeria Act establishes the Chartered Institute of Power Engineers of Nigeria and is charged with the responsibility for determining the standard of knowledge and skill to be attained by persons seeking to become chartered power engineers.