….As Sponsor says Bill Does Not Make Vaccination Compulsory
While the controversial bill on Control of Infectious Diseases Bill 2020 is still struggling to recieve the needed attention in the House of Representatives, the senate will be considering the second reading of the bill next week Tuesday.
The bill said to contain a compulsory vaccine for Nigerians resurfaced in the senate on Tuesday 5th May with a different title.
“National Health Emergency Bill , 2020,” sponsored by Senator Chukwuka Utazi (PDP Enugu North).
The Bill passed first reading with the former Deputy President of the Senate, Ike Ekweremadu raising objection to it.
Ekweremadu demanded for the draft copy of the Bill, which made the President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan to order for distribution of copies to all Senators and ruled that the second reading would be taken next week .
Relying on Order 41 of the Senate Standing Rule, Ekweremadu noted that the Bill is already generating controversies in the House of Representatives and insisted that as a senator, he has the privilege of going through the Bill before it passes second ready.
He said: “I rely on Order 41 of the Senate Standing Rule. As a senator, I am entitled to know the details of this Bill. We want to have copies of the gazetted copies. There is controversy over the same Bill in the House of Representatives.
“We don’t want to have the same issue here. We need to be guided to avoid any backlash. I need to read it and prepare ahead of time.”
President of the Senate, who assured that copies would be given to members, said, “the copies are ready and everybody will get a copy. We are not taking the second reading immediately. That will be done next week. So, members will have the time to read the contents of the Bill.”
Addressing newsmen shortly after the plenary, Senator Utazi said, “I don’t see any controversy about the bill that 102 members of the Senate sponsored. The bill is to address the issue that’s posing public health emergency around the world.
“In Nigeria, we are making efforts to ensure that we have a law that will guide how we handle the issue.
“There are so many things that are not covered under the Quarantine Act. These are the thing that are troubling the country today.
“The bill is to amend the Quarantine Act and to take care of all the issues that have to do with the management of pandemic.
“In doing that, we want to ensure that instead of having firebrigade approach of solving the problem of this nature, we have a law that can handle all that. We want to put everything under a law to address health issues.”
On similarity with the House of Representatives’ bill, the lawmaker said, “I have not read the House bill, but what I know is that we have a bill that will adress the health issues connected with COVID-19 and beyond, so that such issues, whenever they occur in the future, we have a law to address them.
“What we have in the Quarantine Act doesn’t cover all the protocols that we supposed to follow. If they were there, the Presidency and the PTF will not be coming up with one guideline or the other. We want to harmonize the approach on how to face the issue.
Asked if the bill make vaccination compulsory, Utazi said “the bill does not make vaccination compulsory.
“When we have yellow fever, and if you want to travel outside the country, they will demand for yellow fever vaccination certificate at the airport. If you don’t have it, you will be vaccinated there.”
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