After weeks of horse trading and hours of arguments at the senate, the red chamber finally confirmed former governor of Rivers state Rotimi Amaechi as minister on Thursday.
Seventeen other nominees including Adamu Adamu, Geoffrey Oyenma Aisha Abubakar, James Ocholi, Zainab Ahmed and Shittu Adebayo were also confirmed.
This came after the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) senators staged a walk out to protest the imminent confirmation of Amaechi who they argued shouldn’t be confirmed based on petition of corruption against him by the Port Harcourt based Integrity group.
However, indications that a consensus was not forthcoming were indicated by the trenchant stance of the PDP senators and the APC senators once the vote on the confirmation of the ministerial nominees got underway.
Remarkably, Amaechi was listed last on the list of nominees to be confirmed, indicative of the fact that the Senate leadership had envisaged trouble.
While the preceding 17 senators were almost all confirmed without disapproval, when it got to Amaechi’s turn, Senate Minority Leader, Godswill Akpabio reminded the Senate of the earlier agreement that the report of the Senate Committee on Ethics and Privileges would be considered prior to the consideration of Amaechi’s nomination.
Upon that, the Senate President, Senator Bukola Saraki signalled the chairman of the Committee on Ethics and Privileges, Senator Samuel Anyanwu to present his report.
Senator Anyanwu in his report read the findings of the committee in which he noted among others that a petition was presented to the committee alongside the report and the White Paper on the report was endorsed by Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State.
In his findings, he said that Amaechi was represented by his counsel who submitted that the constitution of the panel by the Wike administration was the subject of a judicial process and thus, that Amaechi had decided not to appear in order not to pre-empt the ruling of the court.
In his conclusion, Anyanwu said the committee recommended that in line with the fact that the issues against Amaechi were still pending in court that the Senate should hold the nomination at bay.
The report of the Committee was signed by eight of the 11 members including three APC members, the Senate Deputy Majority Leader, Bala Ibn Na’Allah, Dino Melaye and Omotayo Alasoadura.
Others who signed were Senators Samuel Anyanwu, PDP; Omogunwa Yele, PDP, Ondo South; Peter Nwaoboshi, PDP, Delta North; Jeremiah Useni, PDP, Plateau South; and Obinna Ogba, PDP Ebonyi Central.
Those who did not sign were Senators Binta Garba, APC, Adamawa; Muhammed Shitu, APC, and Olaka Nwogu, PDP, Rivers, who the nominee, Amaechi had told the Senate was his roommate in the university.
Senate Majority Leader, Senator Ali Ndume responding to the submission moved to amend the report to the effect that the Senate should adopt the finding of the committee in 2 (b) (II) to wit:
“Since the matter is already a subject of litigation in a competent court of law, and since the Senate could not work contrary to its own rules (Order 41(7), it is constrained in taking any further action.”
Ndume’s submission immediately put the PDP senators in disarray as their puzzled leaders looked at one another to the intent of the new submission.
Akpabio who ordinarily should second the motions brought forward by the Senate Leader, Ndume, drew back and after recovering himself, cited Order 43 of Senate Standing Rule, to the effect that the Senate had earlier resolved to first consider the report of its Ethics Committee before confirming the nominee.
Responding to Akpabio, Saraki said his point was noted following which he pointed to Senator Babajide Omoworare, APC, Osun East, who through a number of constitutional orders and standing orders of the Senate sought to dismiss the import of the report submitted by Senator Anyanwu.
He observed that the intent of the petition submitted against Amaechi barring those indicted by administrative panels of inquiry had been amended by the Constitution and was as such inconsequential to the confirmation hearing. While Senator Joshua Lidani, Gombe State contended against his submission, Senator George Sekibo from Rivers State charged the Senate to side with the administration’s anti-corruption stance by upholding the report of the committee on ethics.
With the APC senators increasingly taking a position in favour of Amaechi, Senator Biodun Olujimi (PDP, Ekiti), said the PDP senators were resigned to their fate that they could only have their say while the APC would have its way on the issue. As she spoke, PDP senators as if on a prompting, began to signal to one another and led by Senator Akpabio they walked out of the Senate chambers.
The only PDP senator that was left behind was Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Ike Ekweremadu. Following their exit, Senator Saraki raised the question as to whether the Senate should endorse the report of the Committee on Ethics and the Senate with unanimity rejected it. Following that, Saraki threw the question on whether the Senate should endorse Amaechi as a minister and he was unanimously endorsed.
Outside the chambers, Senator Akpabio led other PDP Senators to denounce the process that led to the confirmation.
“The reality is that once a case is before the law, anything about the case is dropped. The issue of taking further action should be stayed, but APC is not willing to abide by the law. We have no option than to stage a walk out. We have a responsibility to Nigerians not to partake in that kind of action. It was not normal for PDP Senators to walk out. This is the first time, and we feel strongly there was a breach of the Nigerian Constitution.”
The APC, however, welcomed the process. Praising the sense of unity among the APC senators, outgoing party spokesman, Alhaji Lai Mohammed said yesterday:
“The cohesion and unity exhibited by the APC Senators on Thursday have shown that our legislators are ready to work with the executive and the party to ensure that the agenda of the party is implemented for the benefit of all Nigerians. We commend all our members and leaders in the Senate and indeed the leadership of the APC for this show of unity,” the party said.
Saying that the confirmation of Amaechi despite the walkout by the PDP caucus was reflective of democracy in action, the party said:
“It is part of democracy that while the minority can have their say, the majority will have their way. Therefore, the decision of the PDP Senators to walk out is nothing but democracy in action,’’ the party said. – Additional report from Punch.
