Members of the House of Representatives on Thursday rejected a Bill seeking to prevent public officers from sending their children to schools overseas.
The Bill was sponsored by the lawmaker representing Esan North-East/Esan South-East, Sergius Ogun.
During debate at Thursday’s plenary, some of the lawmakers insisted that the Bill infringes on the fundamental human rights of Nigerians.
Others argued that some public officers do not control public funds and should not be prevented from giving their children the best education that they can afford.
When the Bill was put to vote, a majority of the lawmakers voted against it.
DAILY NIGERIAN reports that Mr Ogun had in the past sponsored a Bill that sought sanctions against public officials using public funds to seek medical treatment overseas.
The Bill, which has since passed second reading, seeks to amend section 46 of the Healthcare Act of 2014, by providing sanction of N500 million or seven years imprisonment for using public funds for healthcare abroad.
Section 46 of the principal act says: “Without prejudice to the right of any Nigerian to seek medical check-up, investigation or treatment anywhere within and outside Nigeria, no public officer of the Government of the Federation or any part thereof shall be sponsored for medical check-up, investigation or treatment abroad at public expense except in exceptional cases on the recommendation and referral by the medical board and which recommendation and referral shall be duly approved by the Minister or Commissioner of Health of the State as the case may be.”
Leading the debate on the general principle of the bill during plenary, Mr Ogun said the decision to sponsor the bill was “borne out of a desire to discourage medical treatment abroad at the detriment of our indigenous health institutions.”
According to him, there was a need to revamp the poor state of the healthcare sector in Nigeria.
He stated that, “the bill will stop the export of cash abroad and redirect the same to the development of our economy.”
