THE USE OF COMMITTEE AND GROUP MEETINGS IN ENHANCING DECISION MAKING

1.0 Introduction

Mc Kenna and Fleming (1977) defined committee as “A group of individuals which is formed to consider and report on various matter which have been referred to them”. At the out set it will be necessary to explain in a compendium the two major terms of the topic for better understanding. A committee can be for important issue is that it is responsible to the body, which forms it, and infact reports to at the end of its assignment.

While there is a specific connotation on the formation of committee towards the performances of an identified and specific task a meeting according to shaw et al (1965) is “An assembly of person such assembly may arise in circumstance infinitely diverse in their character and combination.From this definition, a group meeting is just a meeting of a group of people with common objective and interest; it may be a committee,The primary pre-occupation of the house of assembly anywhere is the holding of group meetings because it is only through such meeting that decisions can be reached on its varied functions.

Since the legislative time is limited matters to be deal with most of the time either technical or highly specialized, the need therefore arises to form committees to solve problems. This is exactly the case in the Anambra State House of Assembly Awka. while a body containing many members is suitable for discussing principles, it is in appropriate for the examination of details. The usual course is to form a committee of a few members in the House, which can discuss details of the proposals and report back to the full body of the house with recommendation.

1.1 Background Of The Study

Anambra state is one of the youngest state carved out of old Anambra in August 1991. It is one out of the present thirty-six states of the federation. The state has a brief spell of House of Assembly business and within the period, the speaker of the House of Assembly used profusely the committee and groups meetings in dealing with so many delicate and complex matters or problems. most often some matters in the House require expertise and specialist knowledge such matter wre better handled by selective committee to handle and report to the open house made up of few professional and very many generalist.

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1.2 Statement Of The Problem

Before the inception of the House of Assembly in the present democratic depensation, the military had been responsible for making laws but at that time, it was edict in the state and decrees at the federal. These were in practice during the military requires.

The various administrative sets up have been organized into organs. The executive, who is to carry out the laws, the judiciary who is to interpret the laws and the legislative are to focus the laws.

It is the legislative arm of government that we are most concerned with, it is this organ that uses committee and group meetings in solving their problems. there were complain after a brief stay of the House that they have not performed satisfactorily the business of the House of Assembly through inadequate use of committee and group meeting in solving the day to day problem of the House, ie the House of Assembly Anambra state Awka

To this end, the research is geared toward finding the causes of ineffective use of committee and group meeting towards the attainment of goals and aspirations of the state House of Assembly.

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1.3 Purpose Of The Study

Committee and group meetings have been with us, for many decades. Arriving at effective decision by the use of committee and group meetings conceptualized variously by different groups of individual.

Systems may vary on the use of committee and group meetings, but success or failure eventually will depends on organizational or political strategy of the leaders of the state.

The specific purpose of this study is:

1. To identify how committee and groups meetings are used in the Anambra state House of Assembly to enhance decision making.
2. To assess the importance and impact of group meeting in the House.
3. To assess the quality of members selected to serve in various committees.

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1.4 Research Questions

1. How did committee and groups meetings in Anambra state House of Assembly enhance decision making.
2. What are the importance and impact of committee in decision making
3. To what extent has the quality of members selected to served in various committee helped in decision making.

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1.5 Statement Of Hypothesis

1. Ho: The use of committee and group meeting are not used in the Anambra state House of Assembly to enhance decision making.
   Hi: The use of committee and group meeting are used in the Anambra state House of Assembly to enhance decision making.
2. Ho: The use of committee and group meeting are not important in decision making .
   Hi: The use of committee and group meeting are mostly important in decision making.
3. Ho: The quality of members selected to served in various committee are not helpful in decision making.
   Hi: The quality of members selected t served in various committee help in decision making.

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1.6 Theoretical Framework

There are different scholars who conducted theories on the use of committee and groups meetings in enhancing decision-making but this research work will focus on forest. Maltzman (1995) who proposed a conditional model of committees behaviour which argued that the principal of a committee serves as an agent in congress varies systematically over time and across committee’s depending on the salience of the committee jurisdiction compared to that of other committee. However, due to changes in the salience of policy issues overtime there are reasons to believe that salience within the committee change over time to reflect current public opinion and political agend as change in issue salience should affect the agency of the committee over time within the committee, just as Maltzman demonstrated that the level of salience alters the principal among different committees. Using data from the policy Agendas project for the policy areas of education and labour, it shows how the salience of the issues committee considered by the House Education and labour committee changes overtime.

Data comparing NOMINATE scores of the committee members to the scores of the whole chamber and the party causes will be used to test Maltzman’s conditional theory within one committee over time. The ideological make up of the committee’s principal is the full chamber when the salience of issues is high, but in times of lower salience the scores will show that the parties are the main principals of the committee. This finding supports maltz man’s conditional theory but expands it to show that there is systematic variation principal agent relationship between a committee, the chamber and parties over time based on the salience of the committee jurisdiction.

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1.7 Significance Of The Study

Due to the vast nature of Nigeria both in public services the scope of this study is limited to public bureaucracy especially the policy makers in the House of Assemblies.

Therefore, any useful information obtained through a research of this study will go a long way to educate the policy makers or law makers in the federation in enhancing decision making.

Such knowledge will guide and direct them to achieve their decision fast without delay this will no doubt contribute to national growth politically, economically, socially morally and otherwise.

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1.8 Scope Of The Study

This project is directed to Anambra State House of Assembly Awka. The areas of study therefore is wide to cover within the limited time and resource available specifically, this research is intended to analyze the use of committee and group meeting in enhancing decision making particularly Anambra state of committee and group meeting but study will only select some committee that are of interest to this study. Also in 36 states of the federation each state has their own House of Assembly but our study will select Anambra state House of Assembly as a case study.

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1.9 Limitations Of The Study

It is common with the study of this nature that certain constraint must be encountered. What promptly from not achieving most or all of the information required is due to some non-chalet attitude of the members of the House of Assembly.

Accurate information was given by the members that showed concern. Some of the questionnaire were unable to collect data. Because some of the members were reluctant to respond ot question and some were not properly answered thus constituted analysis problem.

Again as a student I lack finance to forge ahead with my project work and lack of fund for transportation and obtain of important document such as magazine and books relating to the topic are major constraints and limitation.

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1.10 Definition Of Term

Term which from the caption of this research work are defined:

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A. Committee and Group meeting.

Committees are session or composition of individuals or export, set up to deals with bills in the House of Assembly at the formative stages or to tackle other matter, which are better discussed in camera by a few people. The committees in the House of Assembly are many but the most outstanding ones are:

1. The standing committee
2. The committee of ways and means
3. The select committee
4. The private bill committee

Their importance rest in their capability to arrive at decision within speed and precision and to address issues for which hey are established.

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B. House Of Assembly

The house of Assembly is the composition of people who gather in the House for deliberation towards administering the entire state.

The individuals who make up the house are admitted through valid electorate constituencies process.The state is carved out into electorate constituencies and these individuals register with INEC[independent national electoral commission] they are voted for through voted by poll or other methods devised by the commission.those of them who win the house of Assembly by oath for the legislature decision making.

Naturally, the government organ consist of the executive,the legislature and the judiciary.The House of Assembly is the legislative arm of government and they are charged with law making functions.