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Nigeria: House Changes Gear on Obasanjo's Invitation
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This Day (Lagos)
13 May 2008
Posted to the web 13 May 2008
Stanley Nkwazema And Chuks Okocha
Abuja
The controversial invitation to former president Olusegun Obasanjo on the power probe has finally been withdrawn following the intervention of prominent leaders in the country, THISDAY learnt last night.
Obasanjo may now answer questions arising from the probe in private and outside the chambers of the National Assembly, THISDAY checks also revealed.
This compromise was brokered by prominent Nigerians, some of whom are believed to be former heads of state. Obasanjo had objected to the manner the House of Representatives Committee on Power and Steel invited him to appear before it to answer questions on expenditure on the power sector during his tenure.
THISDAY was informed last night that after the ex-president's failure to turn up yesterday, the House has written to withdraw the invitation. The withdrawal "is intended to avoid desecrating the office of the president", a source told THISDAY.
"It is not about Obasanjo. It is about the office and stature of a former president of this country. It would set a bad president to put him in the dock at the National Assembly and subject him to the kind of questioning that former ministers have been subjected to in the last few months," he said.
The source said "nothing has changed on the investigations, but something has changed in the way the matter will be approached."
The invitation letter had been signed by "one Sahmed" (in Obasanjo's words), instead of the Speaker or the Clerk of the National Assembly, as protocol demands.
Obasanjo objected to the "disregard" for his age and position, and wondered why a letter dated May 3, 2008 only got to him six days later. Yesterday in his letter to the committee, the ex-president said his failure to appear as he earlier promised was because he became slightly indisposed after preparing his presentation. He, however, forwarded the text of the presentation along with a letter to the committee through his Special Assistant, Mr. Taiwo Ojo.
Ex-VP Atiku Abubakar also did not appear before the committee yesterday but wrote again to the panel, saying he had no information to offer on the inquiry. THISDAY had reported on Monday the text of Obasanjo's perspectives on the power situation where he put the amount of money spent on the power sector during his tenure in the region of $6.5 billion.
The former Finance minister, Mrs. Esther Nenadi Usman, who appeared before the committee said the former Minister of Power and Steel, Senator Liyel Imoke, asked for due process waiver on the power projects and was granted.
The House Committee on Power and Steel probing the expenses on the power sector from 1999 to 2007 had summoned both Obasanjo and Atiku to appear before it at 10 am yesterday. But in a letter to the Chairman of the committee, Hon. Ndudi Elumelu, dated May 11 and read yesterday on the floor of the House, the former president said he personally wanted to respond to the invitation but did not want to hold up the committee.
Obasanjo said: "Since I have on my own decided to respond to your invitation, I do not intend to hold you up. I have a fairly comprehensive written presentation which I am sending to your committee through my Special Assistant, Mr. Taiwo Ojo.
"You will note in the paper my strong desire to personally present the insights and perspectives of mine on power situation.
"I hope the presentation will satisfy the unspecified allegations, counter allegations, and approvals that you referred to in your letter of invitation in addition to the insights and perspectives.
"If, however, there are other points that you want me to elucidate on, I will appropriately, if you will let me know." Obasanjo's letter was read by Elumelu.
Elumelu did not say anything specifically on Obasanjo's letter and on whether the committee would or would not further press the issue of Obasanjo's invitation. But the House is scheduled to go into an executive session today to resolve the matter and other issues threatening to tear its leadership apart.
Atiku, in his letter, told the committee that he had since realised that his presence would no longer be needed by the panel. The former vice-president in the letter he sent to the committee last night said he was already out of the country when the invitation arrived.
He said: "I have tried without success to book a flight back last weekend. I was only able to get a confirmed seat for Tuesday, May 13, 2008 (today). But I have since found out that my presence would no longer be needed at the committee hearing."
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He said he had to go into details to show the high regard in which he held the lawmakers and the importance attached to their oversight function.
We all know the power probe is heading nowhere.Can the House please stop this show and concentrate on their usual duties of chop make I chop.
The truth is progressively showing up about this probe as the real players in the project are finally asked to tell the country about their involvements in the project. For a progressive nation with leaders geared to move a nation forward, details about the projects could have been extracted from records and from normal contacts with these former ministers without recourse to THIS VERY UNNECESSARY MONEY WASTING PROBE. However, with the various situations unfolding in Nigeria now, the world will, definitely, not be surprised. How far will this unnecessary money-wasting blunders contininue?
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