AN APPRAISAL OF THE PRINCIPLES OF DRAFTING LEGISLATIVE PROGRAMME

The drafting of any substantive or subsidiary legislation such as Bills, Rules, Orders or Regulations are in most cases, done by Parliamentary Counsel or Legislative Counsel in the various State or Federal Ministries of Justice. Sometimes, Private Consultants are engaged. But experience has shown that, it is better to allow Parliamentary Counsel to draft all legislations. Usually, Permanent Secretaries in both the Federal and State Ministries prepare the policy proposals in form of drafting instructions. This is made in line with the Government policies affecting any Ministry. It is then forwarded to the legislative counsel for drafting the policies into law. There, the responsible Minister(s) in the Ministry must work in conjunction with the Permanent Secretaries (called the sponsors) of the Bills or subsidiary rules. This is to enable the instructions and consultation with the drafter achieve the desired results of the law.