A bill to repeal the 26-year-old Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act on Tuesday passed second reading at the Senate.
Sponsored by Barnabas Gemade, the bill, is titled: ‘A Bill for an Act to Repeal the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act, No. 16 of 1979 CAP B2 Laws of Federation of Nigeria, 2004 and Re-Enact the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act to make Provision for Corporate and Individual Insolvency; and for other matters connected therewith.’
Leading debate on the bill, Gemade stated that the proposed legislation was designed to bring about the best laws of managing bankruptcy.
Gemade added, “the Bill does not require any form of financial backing to promote its success.”
Speaking against the bill, Tayo Alasoadura, argued that the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA) had already covered the provisions made by the new bill, noting that there would be a collision of laws on the same issues, if the bill was passed into law.
But speaking in support of the bill, Bassey Albert Akpan, however, observed that the CAMA did not cover the provisions, which the bill had made as was earlier pointed out by Alasoadura.
Akpan further argued that there was no way that an Act that was created in 1979 would still be in tandem with current realities.
Also speaking, the Majority Whip, Sola Adeyeye observed that banks are currently having some difficulties as a result of the old bill and called for the relevant committees of the Senate, when constituted, to critically analyse the bill.
In his remark, the Senate president, Bukola Saraki, observed that the bill was in line with the promise of the 8thSenate to attract investments into the country through proper legislation.
OWEDE AGBAJILEKE
