Senate meeting
Senate tackles ministerial nominees. The Senate began vetting the 28 ministerial nominations forwarded to it by President Bola Tinubu last week on Monday.
The Senate vetted 14 of the 28 ministry nominations during a session presided over by Senate President Godswill Akpabio.
They were Abubakar Kyari (Borno), Abubakar Momoh (Edo), former governor Nyesom Wike (Rivers), John Enoh (Cross River), former governor Abubakar Badaru (Jigawa), Ambassador Yusuf Maitama Tuggar (Bauchi) and Hon. Nkiruka Onyejeocha (Abia).
Others were Bello Muhammad (Sokoto), Prof Joseph Utsev (Benue), Senator Abubakar Danladi (Taraba), Barr. Uju-Ken Ohaneye (Anambra), Hon. Olubunmi Tunji Ojo (Ondo), Betta Edu (Cross River) and Imaan Sulaiman Ibrahim (Nasarawa)
While some of the nominees enjoyed easy passage and were invited to ‘bow and go’ without much scrutiny, others were grilled by senators.
Nominees such as Danladi, Utsev, Ohaneye, and Muhammed were grilled by MPs during the plenary.
Three out of the seven other nominees grilled during the session were confronted with issues bordering on alleged age falsification, forgery and perjury.
The three affected nominees were Senator Abubakar Danladi from Taraba State, Bello Muhammad from Sokoto State and Prof. Joseph Utsev from Benue State.
Specifically, Danladi was taken up on an alleged court judgment banning him from holding public office for 10 years.
Though he spiritedly denied the allegation, the Senate President ruled that the issue would be looked into at the stage of confirmation.
There had been social media posts clamouring for Danladi’s disqualification over an alleged Supreme Court ruling that barred him from holding public offices for 10 years.
However, when asked to respond to the allegations, Danladi was it was not true.
He was, thereafter, asked to take a bow being a former senator by the tradition of the National Assembly.
On his part, Bello Muhammad from Sokoto State was taken up on his secondary school certificate.
The nominee, as observed by Senator Jimoh Ibrahim( APC Ondo South), submitted a secondary school certificate that does not tally with the grades contained in his resume.
Muhammed, in his defence, told the Senate that the certificate that has the grades stated in his resume was not attached but it would be provided later.
“Mr Nominee, you will have to make available the certificate that has the grades stated in your resume,” remarked the Senate President in his remarks. Please forward it to the secretariat as it will be required during the confirmation step.”
Prof. Utsev’s résumé, which stated that he began elementary school at the age of three and finished at the age of nine, was called into question.
The nominee, in his certificate, stated that he was born in 1980 and finished primary school in 1989.
The error was spotted by Lagos lawmaker, Senator Tokunbo Abiru, who stated that something must have been missing.
The Senate President reiterated that all issues of infractions on certificates submitted by the affected nominees would be thoroughly looked into at the stage of confirmation.
After answering questions about what he would do if made the Minister of Water Resources in the area of dams, Utsev was asked to take a bow and go.
Though the Ondo nominee, Hon Olubunmi Tunji -Ojo, was taken up by Senator Sadiq Umar ( APC Kwara North), on why he did his national youth service at the age of 38, his clarification was accepted by the Senate.
The nominee, who was born in 1982 and served when he was 38, explained that he finished university in the United Kingdom in 2005 under the age of 30, making him do the compulsory National Youth Service in 2020 after returning to Nigeria.
Ohaneye was also questioned about tax returns but she clarified that she was into philanthropy work which had excused her from tax payment.
The Senate President told them all to bow and go while a decision would be taken on them at the confirmation stage amongst the lawmakers.
Meanwhile, seven of the 14 cabinet nominees vetted by MPs were instructed to “bow and leave.”
’A ‘bow and leave’ is a phrase used by parliamentarians to show respect and honor to former senators, members of the federal House of Representatives, and members of state legislatures.