…warn MTN, Airtel for failure to appear before commitee
By Gloria Ikibah
The House of Representatives has held a public hearing on “A bill To Regulate Corporate Social Responsibility in Nigeria and for other related matters”.
This bill seeks to provide legal status and guidelines to corporate responsibility for better coordination and regulation.
The Chairman House Commitee on Corporate Social Responsibility, Rep. Obiageli Orogbu, also read the riot act as she gave MTN, Airtel last warning to honour it’s invitation or face the warrant of arrest by the Commitee, on Monday in Abuja.
According to Rep. Orogbu, some companies operating in the country have over time violated the law, hence the need for punishment to be melted at them.
She further frowned at National Communications Commission NCC ,MTN and Airtel insisting that they have on several occasions ignored the invitation of the Commitee, and so there is the need to evoke its powers by issuing warrant of arrest.
She said: “Section 89, 8 of the Constitution mandates individual companies as invited to make themselves available to parliament but they break the law and I want to tell you Sir , MTN Airtel they take so much from our nation and they feel too big to appear before the parliament we will not tolerate that.
“I want you as a regulatory body to organize those telecommunication companies were they will be meeting between this parliament and the telecommunication, we gave them the powers to operate in Nigeria so to refuse to honour the invitation of the parliament is a no, no, we take exception to it . The parliament is frowning at it and this is an opportunity to say clearly .
“If MTN is here and I have taken all friendly measure to make them understand the need to appear before the parliament but they have refuse. If you feel you are responsible then you should appear before the parliament ,we want you to be responsible and accountable they operate across the country and they have disrespected the same nation by not housing our invitation.
“We want the Commitee to be socially responsible. If you are providing any social responsibility let us know what you are doing, all we want to know is what you are doing . We are not here to which hunt any company . As a public affairs representative of NCC please reach out to these telecompanies and tell them to make themselves available, if they disrespect he parliament it doesn’t indicate in anywhere that they are responsible.
“Other companies show up, give account and we even go on oversight but NCC is one company that have given us problems insisting that they are in court that is not acceptable”.
While making presentation, Mr Wondi Ndanusa, representative of the Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria, said that the CBN is in support of the bill, he however raised concerns on on the proposed penalty of imprisonment to defaulting companies, he said rather than the penalty, it should be persuasive.
He also said that many companies are faced with a lot of financial burden and responsibilities; even as he proposed that the CSR should be domicil in Corporate Affairs Commission.
In her response, the Committee Chairman said, “We have a lot of petition on these companies causing problems for us in Nigeria, construction companies, oil companies telecompanies and over the years they have had their way, so I disagree that we make it persuasive.
“A lot of companies don’t understand that term, they keep defaulting there must be a fine to make them responsible”.
Speaking also at the hearing, representative of Oil Producers Trade Section, OPTS, Bala Wuoir, expressed concern that the Petroleum Industry Act already mandates oil companies operating in Nigeria to make financial contribution of three Percent of their profit to NDDC so mandating them do so more will be burdensome on them.
He however said oil companies should be exempted from the bill.
The chairman in response insisted that they cannot be exempted, adding that the Commitee requires them to bring what ever they are doing as a corporate social responsibility to the knowledge of the committee .
Speaking earlier the Speaker of the House, represented by the House Leader, Rep. Julius Ihonvbere emphasized that the success of the legislative process is dependent on public response and contribution to the public hearing.
He called on stakeholders to make meaningful contributions that will make the bill a reality.
“Public hearing is part of our legislative process to engage the citizens in lawmaking, especially because the proposed law has impacts to make on the people. Your robust ideas and expected contribution to the discourse will no doubt shape the outcome of this meeting”, he said.