LAGOS ASSEMBLY PASSES VAT BILL, ANTIOPEN GRAZING BILL

A bill to ban open cattle grazing and Value Added Tax (VAT) bill has been passed by the Lagos State House of Assembly on Thursday, September 9.

The Speaker, Mudashiru basa, directed the acting Clerk, Olalekan Onafeko, to transmit a clean copy to Governor Babajide Sanwo Olu for assent.

Both bills were passed after unanimous votes by the lawmakers at the billing where they were read the third time.

The House also passed the bill that prohibits open cattle grazing in the state.

Strengthening open grazing ban in the South Immediately after their passage, Speaker Obasa commended his colleagues for their passion to see that the state continues to grow.

The bill that prohibits open cattle grazing proposes a 21-year jail term for herders in possession of firearms and the establishment of a taskforce to curb open grazing of cattle

The anti-open grazing law followed similar laws passed in Benue, Ogun, Ekiti, Ondo and other parts of the country to curb killer herdsmen activities, while the VAT bill was passed in the wake of similar legislation by Governor Nyesom Wike in Rivers State.

The Speaker, Obasa, commended his colleagues after the bills were passed.

He said: "I thank you all for this historic exercise."

The House had held separate public hearings on the bills on Wednesday, with stakeholders expressing support.