Brain Builders Youth Development Initiative (BBYDI) says an amendment to the NGO Regulatory Bill will ensure complementary roles of Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) to governmental efforts on growth and society development.
The NGO stated that the bill is at the committee stage, after passing the first and second reading at the Senate.
The bill, among other things, seeks for the establishment of an NGO regulatory commission, to oversee and re-register NGOs after the initial registration with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC).
BBYDI, an NGO, spoke through the Team Lead of Kwara South Ambassadors, Mr Rasheed Kadri, during a sensitization visit to Oro in Irepodun Local Government Area of Kwara.
According to Kadri, the bill, if passed into law with its present provision, will restrict and limit the operations of NGOs more than the normal regulation.
“Through the new registration, the commission will have the sole power to license all NGOs.
“Having a new commission will amount to extra cost for the government at a time that the country is considering merging organizations to cut down the cost of governance.
“NGOs play complementary roles to governmental efforts in the growth and development of the society, which will not be attainable with the new bill.
“It is important for the community members to lend their voices to stop the passage of the bill into law, as it is.
“The bill will impede the developments and provision of amenities the community gets through NGOs,” he said.
In her lecture on gender justice, Miss Ayomitide Ebo, a BBYDI Ambassador, advised parents to ensure equal rights and opportunities are given to both boy and girl children.
She said it was imperative to allow children to develop generally and not assign roles or importance according to their gender.
Also, Mr David Ashaolu, a BBYDI Ambassador, in his presentation on digital rights, enlightened the community members on the need to uphold and respect the rights of others in the digital space.
He advised against giving out sensitive data like PINs or passwords to outsiders to avoid falling prey to scammers.
Mr Abdulraheem Abdulsalam, who responded on behalf ofmembers of the community, commended the group for the initiative to educate members of the community.
He pledged the support of the community to the NGO whenever it was needed.
Credit NAN: Text excluding Headings.
