AT LAST, HOUSE OF REPS RECEIVES MARITIME SECTOR BILLS

The House of Representatives has received three maritime sector bills namely:  Nigerian Ports and Harbours Authority bill, the Maritime Zones Bill and the Chartered Institute of Shipping of Nigeria bill.
Our correspondent confirmed that the bills were tabled on Wednesday last week at the House of Representatives during plenary by the House committee on marine transport which is chaired by Honourable Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi. 
The presentation marks commencement of the bills ‘final rights of passage’ as they are likely to be subjected to clause by clause consideration any moment from now.
Shipping Position Weekly had reported exclusively last week that work had been concluded on the three bills and that they were to be tabled last week by the marine transport committee.
Sources hinted that it is unlikely that the three bills will encounter any difficulties when they would be subjected to a clause by clause consideration by the law makers any moment from now.
They are expected to go to the Senate for concurrence since the upper chamber does not have another bill that can counter the three.
Confirming the development to Shipping Position Weekly last week, the chairman, House committee, Hon Ugwuanyi said that the bills are no longer the properties of his committee since they have been tabled in plenary.
He singled out the Ports and Harbour bill as likely to take more time during clause- by- clause considerations. “You know how bulky it is, it may take as much as two weeks to complete, that also depends on when the House fixes it for consideration, and you know there are other bills on queue”, he disclosed.
He was particularly happy that the committee took the pains to allow stakeholders to determine the contents of the Ports and Harbours bill. “The most important thing is that it is a stakeholders bill, we gave it to the House as you people wanted it to be and I am happy that stakeholders also contributed immensely into the final draft of the bill”, he told our correspondent.
The Ports and Harbours Bill seeks to repeal the Nigerian Ports Authourity Act of 1999 and establish in its stead the Nigerian Ports and Harbour Authourity.  The CISN bill seeks to establish a regulatory institution for the purpose of training of manpower in the nation’s shipping sector. On its part, the maritime zone bill seeks to extend Nigeria’s exclusive economic zone.