The House of Representatives has been encouraged to move quickly to enact the Chartered Institute of Auctioneers of Nigeria (CIAN) bill by experts in the auctioneering field.
The experts urged the parliament to drop the bill on the Auctioneers Registration Council because it would duplicate existing regulations in a statement they jointly signed on Sunday in Abuja.
Jogunola Onabanjo, president of United Auction House, Hillary Nwaukor, chairman of the Certified Institute of Auctioneers (CIAN), and Adeleke Hassan, CIAN registrar, all attest to this.
According to Mr. Nwaukor, the CIAN bill was introduced in 2013 during the 7th Assembly and advanced to Third Reading in the 8th and 9th Assemblies of the National Assembly’s two houses. Mr. Nwaukor disclosed.
According to Mr. Nwaukor, the CIAN bill was re-gazetted in November 2023 so that it may be discussed in the green chambers by the Committee of the Whole. Thus, he added, it was unnecessary to introduce the bill for the Auctioneers Registration Council of Nigeria.
He emphasized that the CIAN bill has received resounding public support from other sister organizations, including the National Association of Auctioneers, and has appropriately handled the education and certification of auctioneers.
“Therefore, we also watched with great interest the reasoning behind the expedited deliberation of a bill that was presented at the First Reading on June 5 and June 6 and was referred to the House Committee of the Whole,” Mr. Nwaukor stated. “It is in opposition to current legislative practices and conventions because the Auctioneers Registration Council of Nigeria bill was never approved by the previous assemblies’ Third Reading,” he continued.
While we implore our distinguished lawmakers to make sure that due process, legislative procedure, and customs are followed. We would like to draw attention to the fact that the recently introduced Auctioneers Registration Council bill (HB 1508) will result in a dual licensing system that requires auctioneers to hold federal and state licenses.
“The purpose of the CIAN bill is to advance professionalism, regulation, and control of the knowledge and skill set necessary for auctioneers in their line of work.” Mr. Nwaukor added that the institute has already worked with state governments and higher education institutions to train and certify auctioneers all over Nigeria as part of its efforts to expand and deepen the practice of auctioneering in that nation.
According to him, the institute was also aware that Nigeria’s auction industry is included in the concurrent list of the Constitution. He emphasized that numerous states around the nation already had legislation pertaining to auctioneer licensure; therefore, submitting the bill by the Auctioneers Registration Council would be redundant and in violation of the constitution.
Thus, he claimed that the Auctioneers Registration Council bill would destroy the industry and prevent it from growing across the nation if it were to become law. (NAN)
