Senate session: Drama, confirmation saga & final showdown? BY HENRY UMORU In what is increasingly becoming indecipherable, leaders of the All Progressives Congress, APC, in both the executive and legislature, appear bent on dragging the nation through another season of crisis with the confrontation over confirmation processes. This report will show why both arms of government need to calm down and resolve their differences in the interest of the Nigerian masses. Particularly, the legislature, which suffers public opprobrium, needs to reassess the basis of its engagement with both the executive and the public, if only to disembark from its perceived posturing of serial antagonism. Similarly, the executive would do well to shoot down the antics of meddlesome interlopers in its midst. The Senate resumed on Tuesday, July 4, 2017, from its two-week break, and immediately went into a standoff with the presidency, resolved to defend what it described as its integrity and vowed to stand down all requests for confirmation into executive positions in the federal government. The Senate’s position was upon overflow of outrage at the challenge from Acting President Yemi Osinbajo to the Senate’s capacity to confirm certain nominees of the executive into federal bodies. Senators across partisan lines were particularly miffed by the continued stay in office of Mr. Ibrahim Magu as chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, despite his rejection by the Senate on two occasions. Therefore, in their resolution that day, the Senate asked the Acting President to apologise for his challenge to the Senate’s power to confirm persons into certain executive bodies. Curiously, Osinbajo had made his statement on confirmation and Section 171 way back in April, 2017, even when President Muhammadu Buhari was sitting-in. The question is, why hold that against Osinbajo now that he is now that he is Acting President. Saraki, Magu and Osinbajo In the Senate’s renewed face-off with the executive, it vowed that it will not take it likely if the Acting President fails to implement the resolutions of the Red Chamber, just as it resolved to suspend, forthwith, confirmation of all requests of nominees forwarded to it by the Presidency until such matters of confirmation as contained in the constitution were strictly adhered to. The lawmakers then reiterated their earlier position and, thereafter, reinforced it that all nominees rejected by the Senate should be relieved of their duties, with particular reference to the acting chairman of the EFCC. The Senate had at the resumption of plenary, entered into a closed session which lasted for almost an hour. A source at the meeting said senators were not happy over what they termed, “flagrant refusal by the executive to implement resolutions passed by the Senate.” This is a usual refrain from senators whenever they choose to bay for blood. Osinbajo, had, last April, in an interview, said: “It is up to the Senate to make their judgment, and it is up to us to say what we want to do. If our candidate is rejected, we can re-present him. No law says we can’t re-present him. And again, there is the other argument, whether or not we need to present him for confirmation and that’s a compelling argument from Femi Falana”. The latest resolution of the Senate came immediately after the reading of a letter from Osinbajo requesting it to confirm Lanre Gbajabiamila as the substantive Director-General of the National Lottery Commission (NLC). Osinbajo’s letter, which was dated June 12, 2017, was titled, “Request for confirmation of the appointment of Mr. Lanre Gbajabiamila as Director- General, National Lottery Regulatory Commission.” The letter read: “In compliance with the provisions of section 8 (1A) of the National Lottery Act 2005, I write to forward the name of Mr. Lanre Gbajabiamila as the nominee for the position of Director General, National Lottery Regulatory Commission for the consideration and appointment of the Senate. Soon after the letter was read, Senator Ahmed Sani, APC, Zamfara West, raised a point of Order 14 of the Senate Standing Rules, just as he argued that since the Acting President had already concluded that the Senate lacked the powers to confirm nominees, there was no need to acknowledge any letter from the executive on issues that concern confirmation. Supporting Senator Sani, Senator George Thomson Sekibo, PDP, Rivers East, who took a swipe at the executive arm over its continued refusal to comply with the resolutions of the Senate, stressed that the development was a clear attempt by the Presidency to usurp the powers and roles of the apex legislative body. Senator Sekibo, who quoted relevant sections of the constitution to buttress his argument said: “What is happening shows to Nigerians that they (executive) are either trying to quiet(sic) the National Assembly or trying to take our responsibilities. From the constitution, it is very clear that one of the functions of the senate is confirmation of appointments by the President. The Constitution did not give room for acting appointment after a nominee has been rejected by the Senate. If the Acting President says we do not have the power to confirm and then turns around to send us a nomination, which one do we now take? I think Senate should put a suspension on this nomination until this issue is resolved.” In his remarks, Senate President Bukola Saraki who presided over plenary warned that the Senate must show serious action on the matter for once and for all and put it behind it, adding,”it is very clear these resolutions as passed must be acted upon by the Acting President, and ensure that we continue to respect our democracy, our laws and constitution. It is not for us to choose which laws we obey and which laws we don’t obey. That is not the way any civilised, modern society works. And we hope that the Acting President will take appropriate action in line with these resolutions.” President Muhammadu Buhari had forwarded Magu’s name to the Senate in June, 2016 for confirmation. He was appointed in acting capacity by President Buhari on November 9, 2015, following the sack of his predecessor, Ibrahim Lamorde. The Senate had, in March this year, for the second time, rejected the nomination of Magu as the substantive chairman of the anti-graft agency. The refusal by the Senate to confirm Magu came three months after the Senators had rejected him because of a security report by the Department of State Services, DSS, which was again a replay of some months ago. The Senate, through Saraki, forwarded the communication of its resolution at plenary to the presidency. Prior to Tuesday’s confrontation, the Senate had drawn the battle line with the Presidency as it suspended for two weeks, the screening of 27 persons President Buhari nominated for the office of Resident Electoral Commissioners, RECs. Then as now, the decision by the Senate was to protest its displeasure with the continued retention of Mr. Ibrahim Magu as acting chairman of EFCC. The Senate claimed it was also not happy with the Presidency over comments by the Chairman, Presidential Advisory Committee against Corruption, PACAC, Professor Itse Sagay, who was alleged to have described the exercise of the Senate in screening nominees of the Executive as mere confirmation. The Senate called for his removal and since then, Sagay has been confronting the Senate. In their contributions, Senators Isah Hamman Misau, APC, Bauchi Central, Matthew Urhoghide, PDP, Edo South, Samuel Anyanwu, PDP, Imo East, Dino Melaye, APC, Kogi West, and the Senate Chief Whip, Senator Olusola Adeyeye, APC, Osun Central, spoke in the same vein as they lampooned the Executive branch. Adeyeye said “I voted yes for Magu. But the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria voted no. I stand with the Nigerian Senate. I choose a strong institution. We should not allow our institutions to be weakened. I want to lend the whole of my being to the first realm of the estate which is the legislature. I pray that we assert the independence of the legislature and not as a sign of power mongering, but to show that this is not the government of strong individuals. If there is any law passed by the National Assembly, signed by the President and gazetted, no one has the permission to dance around that law, adding, “Whoever has a problem with any law should go to court, until a court declares it null and void it remains the law of the land. Anyone who does not respect it is breaking the law of the land.” On his part, the Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, who noted that the executive must obey the contents of the constitution, said, “let me make it clear that this has nothing to do with the Director-General of Lottery Commission or Ibrahim Magu, but about our constitution. One of the features of the Senate is the power of confirmation. The framers of the constitution gave the power to the Senate. Mr. Acting President Asserts But even before the dust could settle, an indication that the Acting President was not prepared to kowtow to the Senate over the statement of power to confirm, the presidency fired back, daring the Senate that Magu will remain chairman of the EFCC, so long as the Muhammadu Buhari presidency subsists. Osinbajo, who was represented at a function organised by the EFCC by the Kaduna State governor, Mallam Nasir El- Rufai, said that his stance was essentially because Magu remained a nightmare to corrupt persons in the country. It was during the commissioning of the Zonal Office of the EFCC, where he maintained that he and President Buhari had confidence in Magu. Senate spokesman, Senator Sabi Aliyu Abdullahi, said the Senate stood by its rejection of Magu as the substantive chairman of the anti- graft agency. “There is no problem, the Senate has made its point, we have already taken a position on Ibrahim Magu, the Senate has rejected his nomination, and we have said that he should be removed. These are the issues that we have raised for now, and we stand by our position. The Senate has made its position known; we are not in a position to respond because someone made his statements. Osinbajo is entitled to his opinion.” National interest trumps ego Perhaps, the Senate would need to start a reassessment of the basis of its engagement and vice versa. Take, for instance, the seeming infantile vituperations of Senator Eyinnaya Abaribe, that a vacuum exists at Aso Rock. Yes, Saraki was quick to step-in and shot it down, but that move opened the Senate to insinuations that there may have been a script handed to Abaribe. Questions quickly arose that, perhaps, the issue could have been quietly discussed before the open drama. Or was he flying a kite? But the Senate betrayed its weakness by appearing to lack up-to-date information as Osinbajo, as he was already back from his trip. And whereas the Senate had said before that it won’t confirm RECs, it went back on its words. Was there any intervention at that time? Do they know something Nigerians don’t know? And by the same token, the Presidency that had also claimed that it may not need to send appointees who ordinarily are supposed to be staff of the President and covered by Section 171 for screening again, still went ahead to submit the name of Gbajabiamila. Why send the name of NLC DG for confirmation? It shows inconsistency in arguments. Curiously too, this commission even of lesser stature than the EFCC. Yet, the Senate, while carrying on the way it is over the EFCC issue, continues to cement the perception that it is afraid of Magu and, therefore, is bent on dealing with him. In the same vein, the much vaunted security report on which the Senate hinges its refusal to confirm Magu, was sent from the executive twice, thereby suggesting that the executive, too, is challenged. Add to this potentially combustible mix, the battle over who has right to add, remove or modify the Appropriation Act – the budget. The best place to get these matters settled is the Supreme Court. Yet, none of these leaders have made moves for their respective arms of government to approach the ultimate court. All these, at a time when the issue of budget mutilation is still causing ripples in the polity. More interestingly is the el-Rufai angle to the unfolding drama. The Kaduna State governor appeared to be too eager to be seen speaking for Acting President Osinbajo in what observers have come to describe as a move to engage new allies, after the initial supposition that the self-same governor represents one of the hawks in the Buhari administration. What is the Kaduna State governor angling to project or, better put, benefit room this? At a time when the health of President Buhari gives cause for concern, a period when the recession in the land continues to bite harder, when Nigerians are hoping more than expecting that things would get better, is this the best the Presidency and the legislature can offer? The implications of the seeming showdown far outweighs the issues of ego and lack of a patriotic zeal to engage meaningfully? There looms a possibility of a lock down of government business. Senate’s position, in its simplest interpretation, means it is on strike? What will this do to the growing negative image the Senate already has in the eyes of the people, a perception challenge that it is striving to burnish and change? On the other hand, can Osinbajo afford a showdown now that he is not the substantive president? He will always be reminded that the President is somewhere. More worrisome is that reality that not many know the real health status of President Buhari? The post Senate session: Drama, confirmation saga & final showdown? appeared first on Vanguard News. from Vanguard News http://ift.tt/2u4Fztc via Naijapounds