NASS, most criticised institution in Nigeria —Lasun

The Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Honourable Lasun Yusuf, has said the National Assembly is the most criticised institution in the country.

The Deputy Speaker stated this when the National Association of Nigeria Travel Agencies (NANTA), led by its national president, Mr Bankole Bernard, paid him a visit.

According to him, “We have a National Assembly where everybody in Nigeria criticises what we are doing.”

He noted that, “People who criticise us are right, but you don’t criticise us destructively.”

Honourable Lasun, however, tasked Nigerians and  other key stakeholders in the Nigeria project to feel free in approaching the National Assembly with proposals that could help move the country forward, through lawmaking.

He added that the process of making law was time consuming and expensive, stressing that Nigerians should not see the National Assembly as doing nothing.

On diversification of the nation’s economy, the Deputy Speaker said the issue of tax was not being handled properly, saying “it is because Nigeria is endowed with natural resources, that is why we are not too keen about taxes. All over the world, tax is the most important thing.”

The Deputy Speaker then tasked his guests to look into how the new foreign exchange regime was affecting airline operations in the country.

Speaking earlier, the association’s  national president told the deputy speaker that, “we have challenges which make us to pitch our tent with your office. What is happening in the aviation sector, some of the airline operators are threatening to leave while some have left.”

To salvage the situation, he said “there is need for us to have good legislation that will help us achieve greater height.”

He also appealed that government should help the airlines to make payment in naira and not in dollar, saying, dollarisation of the aviation sector was not helping the country.