The reintroduction of the controversial water resources bill in the House of Representatives, despite being rejected by many Nigerians, is an indication that those behind it have a set agenda. The bill, which was thrown out by the 9th National Assembly, was, on June 30, 2022, brought back by the chairman of House Committee on Water Resources, Sada Soli. The bill seeks to bring all water sources as well as river banks under the control of the Federal Government through the agencies to be created by the bill. The bill was also introduced in the 7th and 8th National Assemblies and was rejected due to opposition by Nigerians.
When the bill resurfaced earlier in the 9th Assembly, it faced serious opposition and was subsequently withdrawn following strident protests from many lawmakers, the Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF) and other Nigerians. In the renewed bid to reintroduce the bill, the Speaker of the House, Femi Gbajabiamila, had assured Nigerians that the obnoxious issues in the old bills had been reviewed.
Some of the sections in the bill that are contentious include Section 13, which states that “in implementing the principles under subsection (2) of this section, the institutions established under this act shall promote integrated water resources management and the coordinated management of land and water resources, surface water and ground water resources, river basins and adjacent marine and coastal environment and upstream and downstream interests.”
