The Speaker of the House of Representatives Mr Femi Gbajabiamila has underscored the importance of collaboration between public institutions and the private sector.
Mr Gbajabiamila made the remark during the signing ceremony of a Memorandum of Understanding between the Office of the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) on law reform.
The Speaker said partnerships between the public and private institutions are bound to promote good governance and sustainable development.
According to him, the collaboration between the two bodies since the inception of the 9th House has witnessed positive results in the passage of some critical laws in the country
He said: “This is basically the formalization of something that’s already working. The signing of the MoU may seem symbolic, but I see it beyond that. I see it as a way of deepening our democracy and developing the country, which we all so passionately love.
“Contrary to what a lot of people think, I always believe that governance is about collaboration; it’s about everybody. It’s not about politicians alone, it’s about everybody, so we’ve got to maximize our efforts and potential to bold, bigger and better things for this country.
Earlier in his remarks, the NBA President, Olumide Akpata, appreciated the speaker and the House for being most accommodating with regards to collaboration and the potential of making progress together.
Akpata noted that the NBA is desirous of working with the Legislature to bring to bear legislation for good governance while noting that law associations are part of the legislative process in some countries.
He added that the signing of the MoU was to remedy the past situation where the NBA seemed not to be keen on working with the Legislature.