Tashikalmah Hallah
12 October 2008
The atmosphere was tense on that fateful Thursday. Members of the House of Representatives were eager to dispose of what was on the Order Paper to enable the Speaker Dimeji Bankole read out what they had been waiting for.
The Speaker had announced, after singing the traditional prayers, that the committee's leadership would be announced. This heightened tension in the 'green chamber'.
Due to the anxiety, MPs staged a mild protest when the Speaker asked Members who had petitions to present them. There was a chorus shout of 'no' but bemused Dimeji Bankole recognised two MPs who had petitions from their constituencies.
Since July 24th, when the Speaker of the House of Representatives dissolved the standing committees, tension and anxiety had been running and reached its climax last Thursday when the names of the Chairmanship and Deputies of the standing committees were read out.
The selection process was done in deviation from the old tradition. Instead of the old conclave of principal officers, floor members were injected to add impetus into the process.
The zonal caucuses also played significant roles in choosing who became chair of a particular committee. It was not an all PDP affair. MPs from the opposition side said they were satisfied with the slots given to them, though they did not sign any Government of National Unity (GNU) agreement.
The Speaker said the House of Representatives, in the past 11 months, had been working in harmony and that there was no need to discriminate or marginalise any political party in the House.
"In the past 10 months, all parties have been united with Nigeria as number one on the agenda. With patriotism, we have managed to come together.
"My dear colleagues, may I remind us that today the last section of our prayer we said helped us to agree on only those things that will promote the interest of the nation. The exercise of the reconstitution of the leadership of the committees of the House of Representatives is now complete.
"We are not all geniuses, neither are we all fools. That basically means that there will be some winners and some losers. At the end of the day the House of Representatives should be the winner. The institution is first and foremost being the beneficiary. We did this exercise with all sense of fair play".
The Speaker while reading out the names said that 9 per cent of the chairmen and deputy chairmen were dropped, 27 per cent were new chairmen and deputies, 60 per cent were reshuffled from different committees and six percent retained seats as chairmen but not necessarily in the committees they headed before.
"Every single zone of PDP got an increase in quantity and quality. No zone lost out on quality and quantity. The exercise started last night 10 o'clock and ended about 10 minutes before we entered the chamber".
But some zones, particularly the South West, are protesting the committee's reconstitution as they have lost some key committees. The committees they lost included, NDDC, Ethics and Privileges and House Services and Foreign Affairs.
While the NDDC was zoned to the South South, Ethics and Privileges, House Services and Foreign Affairs are now in the North West.
Also, Edo State caucus is protesting the loss of Interior Committee to North East.
Rep Hembe Herman (PDP, Benue) rejected his appointment as Deputy Committee chairman on Donor Agency, citing personal reason.
Similarly, some known loyalists of former Speaker, Mrs Patricia Olubunmi Etteh were edged out from the committee chairmanship. Amongst them are Mr Festus Adegoke for Chairman Appropriation, Mrs Titilayo Akindahunsi (House Services), Mrs Florence Akinwale (Ethics and Privileges) Agboola Ajayi (NDDC) Tam Brisbe (Petroleum Upstream), West Idahosa (Internal Affairs) and Badamasi Kabir (Special Duties).
But Bankole, said that the selection of the committee chair was done "with all sense of fairness", adding that, "We are not all geniuses neither are we all fools".
Also, Bankole, while reconstituting the committees said Reps Farouk Lawan (PDP, Kano), John Halims Agoda (PDP, Delta) and former Speaker Pro-Tempore, Terngu Tsegba were offered 'juicy' committees but they all turned them down claiming that the interest of the House was paramount.
Sunday Trust learnt that Rep Njidda Ahmed Gella (PDP, Adamawa), Abdul Ahmed Ningi (PDP, Bauchi), Rep Chuma Nzeribe (PDP, Anambra), and Dr Garba Shehu Matazu were offered first right of refusal of their committees.
Apart from Ningi who joined the House in July, after a long period of legal struggle to claim his mandate, the rest were the arrowheads of the Integrity Group, which spearheaded the campaign for the resignation of Mrs Patricia Olubunmi Etteh and Alhaji Babangida Nguroje as Speaker and Deputy Speaker of the House respectively.
Mrs Etteh and her erstwhile Deputy were indicted by the David Idoko panel which investigated the N628.8m contract for the renovation of their official apartments as well as purchase of 12 exotic cars.
Supporters of the former Speaker accused the Integrity Group of executing a hatchet job as the former Speaker had refused their request to head committee of their choice. They had claimed that Rep Lawan had wanted to chair the committee on Appropriation but was given Education instead and John Halims Agoda had wanted the Committee on Petroleum.
Also, supporters of the former Speaker said that Mercy Almona-Isei, Abike Dabiri were refused to be appointed as chairman Committee on Gas and Media respectively hence they teamed up with Lawan to fight the former Speaker.
Critics of Bankole said that his public declaration that he offered 'what people termed juicy committee' to Farouk Lawan and Halims Agoda was admission that he has traded the committee chairmanship.
But Rep Farouk Lawan (PDP, Kano) and John Halims Agoda (PDP, Delta) said said they rejected the offer because they did not believe in 'juicy' committee before they can raise any issue of national outlook, adding that they can operate anywhere.
They also said that the Speaker did not offer them the 'juicy' committees as compensation for their roles in his emergence as Speaker of the House of Representatives but it was on merit.
Lawan in an interview confirmed that Bankole had offered him the chairmanship of the House committee on Appropriation, while Agoda was given the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) committee but they rejected because the Integrity Group was for the unity of the House and not for self aggrandisement.
According to him, "During the crisis that engulfed the House which led to the resignation of the former Speaker and the former Deputy Speaker, when we formed the Integrity Group and we insisted that we needed to redeem the image and the integrity of the House, the general blackmail that was used against some of us, particularly by those who were in the Etteh camp, was that we were doing it because we lost out in what they regarded then as juicy committees.
"As far as I'm concerned, there is no committee that is juicy or committee that is not juicy. It is simply a question of perception. Some people perceive some committees to be more important than others. To me, like I have always maintained, chairing a committee is a responsibility.
"There is no sector in this country that is not facing challenges and so what is important is for people who have been assigned responsibilities to examine the challenges facing those sectors and to try to play their own role in making positive contributions that will improve the sectors they have been assigned to oversight.
"In my own case, the impression was that I wanted to chair the Committee on Appropriations and I was doing what I was doing simply because Etteh did not appoint me to Chair the Committee on Appropriations.
"We were motivated by the desire to cleanse the House of Representatives to ensure that the credibility of the House was redeemed. That was why we did what we did. As far as we are concerned, none of us in the integrity group did what we did because we were fighting for committee membership or leadership.
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