The Nigerian Senate on Tuesday stepped down the bill seeking to establish the Peace Corps of Nigeria, following opposition by some lawmakers.
The Senate had postponed debate on the bill following the arrest of its commandant, Dickson Akoh last month.
It then asked its committee on the judiciary to do a critical examination of all issues surrounding the corp.
The committee on the bill chaired by Bayero Nafada presented its report on Tuesday.
But the bill could not proceed to for a third reading as senators argued against its passage, citing the lawsuit involving the Corp Commandant and the police.
The senators, therefore, called for caution during a debate on the bill.
“A lot of people have been deceived. The senate should not be a stamp for fraud,” Ike Ekweremadu, deputy senate president, said while noting that the Corps has been having a running battle with the Police.
However, Senate President Bukola Saraki said the debate on the bill is being stepped down not because of the problem of Peace Corp of Nigeria with the Police, but because there were issues that needed to be reexamined.
“I think there are a number of issues, and I think we need to be guided by our rules by not setting a bad precedent,” he said.
“The fact that it is court should not be an issue. We have to also look at the relationship with the green chamber but at the same time, there are issues.
“I think we should go with earlier suggestion, we are not stepping it down because of the court. We are going to consider the relationship with the other chamber and some of the issues raised here and the chairman judiciary will look into some of these issues and come back to us and hopefully, some of the issues will be addressed.”