ActionAid International Nigeria

1
Nigerian CSOs and parliaments

• Working together for accountable government

Workshop at the CIVICUS World Assembly, 2006,
Glasgow Ojobo Atuluku
2
Major Engagement with Parliaments

• National Political Reform Conference 2005
• Annual Global Week of Action and other education
  Issues
• Freedom of Information Bill
• Parliamentary Liaison
• HIV/AIDS
• Anti- Poverty Issues (national Conference on
  Poverty Eradication) 2006
• etc

3
Political context

• A bicameral legislature (Senate and House of
  Representatives jointly known as the National
  Assembly) at the national level and a unicameral
  one (State House of Assembly) at the State level
• Democratic government has been in place in
  Nigeria for the past five years.
• For more than two decades Nigeria has been having
  political, religious and ethnic conflicts, thus,
  the persistent insecurity of lives and property.
• Challenge of free and fair election Godfatherism
  in politics
• Lack of opposition party, too many parties (over
  30), ruling party is tantamount to the government
• The Nigerian poor and marginalized do not have
  the ability to demand accountability from the
  elected leaders, (nor the notion that it is their
  right take an active part in running their own
  affairs).
• Corruption is rampant, (has become endemic) and
  has persisted at Federal, State and Local
  Government levels.
• Lack of participation in Constitution making and
  Constitutionalism and other processes
• The present government has improved consultation
  with civil society (but the process is still
  highly selective and shrouded in secrecy).
• The process of policy formulation remains
  top-down limiting people participation.
• The practice of the (observance of ) rule of law
  is weak and selective.
• The absence of Freedom of Public Information Act,
  a Fiscal Responsibility or Budgetary legislation
• The presence of an Official secrets Law
• Impact on the scope for CSOs and the National
  Assembly to work together means that CSOs have to
  strategically woo the legislators and convince
  them to give them a hearing
•  An accountable Government is a new process in
  which even the Parliaments have to fight for
  space within which to hold the executive to
  account. However, not even Parliament has an open
  and transparent process. In short, there is no
  accountability to the public.

4
Actors

• The State of civil society varies across the
  country with some states have a proliferation of
  rights conscious organisations and yet others
  none at all. Generally CSO are nascent, weak,
  lack finances and institutional capacity.
• Parliament has been involved in a struggle for
  relevance with the executive. While it passes
  laws, the norm is for laws to be flaunted even
  when they have been specific judgements of courts
  of superior records in the land. This gave rise
  to a recent strike action by the well respected
  Nigerian Bar Association.
• Parliament has oversight functions over Executive
  ministries, departments and agencies and
  periodically do summon public officials to make
  explanations. Parliament also has approval over
  ministerial appointments.
• Parliament has been very supportive in the
  Freedom of Information bill processes and other
  processes to enhance accountability. Its latest
  success and redeeming act in the eyes of many
  Nigerians is the Parliamentary stance on the
  Constitutional amendment for presidential tenure
  elongation which it threw out. On the flip side
  though is the fact that other very cogent
  recommendations of the committee were also thrown
  out. 

5
Incentives and disincentives

• As CSO engagement with the National and State
  Assemblies deepen into issues based
  relationships, incentives are beginning to
  override disincentives
• Incentives
• Ability to better meet the needs of the citizenry
• Recognition that one good legislation can achieve
  a decade of CSO advocacy for change
• Disincentives
• Godfatherism in Nigerian politics means that a
  politician may have sold his or her independence
  to a financer or party power-broker in order to
  win an election.
• Intra-Party mechanisms

6
Opportunities and barriers

• Opportunities
• Public Finance issues including budgetary and
  fiscal issues
• More qualified people in the Parliaments
• Same targets (MDGs, Anti-Poverty agenda, a better
  life for constituents)
• Barriers
• Ignorance and lack of enlightenment e.g. a bill
  for an Institute for Reproductive Health thrown
  out as wanting to legalise abortion even though
  there was nothing in it on abortion
• Inadequate funding on CSO part and untimely
  release of funds on Parliament side.
• Parliamentarians Time (they are extremely busy
  with different pulls on their time especially at
  certain times of their calendar)

7
Mechanisms for more accountable working

• The National Assembly has established processes
  through which both sectors can engage
• The committee working style of the Assembles mean
  that there can be specialised and focused
  interactions.
• CSOs can bring in expertise to help the
  Assemblies to make better analysis and take
  better decisions.
• The establishment of a Parliamentary Liaison by
  ActionAid has meant that CSOs can gain insider
  information and be more proactive about
  engagement opportunities
• CSO activities like the publication of a NASS
  Watch by ActionAid and the TV programme by New
  Age media on the National Assembly are a couple
  of examples.
• The Public Hearing format sometimes planned
  jointly by the Assembly Committees and CSOs are
  also key.
• Involving Parliamentarians in CSO activities
  broadens their horizons

8
Issues

• Public Finance
• Fiscal responsibility
• Constitutional Reform
• Education
• HIV/AIDS
• Internally displaced persons
• Etc. CSOs engage in almost all issues

9
Outcomesof Joint working for accountability

• Positive results
• Mutual respect resulting in space for civil
  society and interest in their perspectives
• Self-consciousness amongst parliamentarians that
  their constituents are watching and have become
  aware of their right of recall over them
• Sensitivity to public accountability
• Negative results
• There is a real danger of cooption for CSOs

10
Lessons

• A major constraint for collaborative and
  supportive work for CSOs and Parliaments is the
  lack of understanding and the mutual distrust
  that both perceive and approach each other with.
• An understanding of the strengths of each and the
  opportunities open for working and achieving
  together are limitless especially in terms of
  accountability issues
• In terms of money, it is very cheap to engage
  parliamentarians and the results are far reaching
• It is long term, patient work and any
  inconclusive piece of work cannot translate
  across a newly elected parliament.