Emmanuel Aziken
5 December 2008
THE fuss by Senator Uche Chukwumerije in the Senate chamber on November 26 was another reminder of the vexation of many Nigerians on the tolerant screening of ministerial nominees by the Senate."Before I go on may I remind my colleagues that we are not a local government council and must not be heckled," Chukwumerije (PPA, Abia North) said with an unusual unsteadiness in his voice that barely held back the anger of the professional taekwondo expert.
Senator Chukwumerije protested for the second time that day the courtesy to a ministerial nominee the privilege to bow and go without answering questions.
"By the bow and go short-circuits, you are depriving not just ourselves here but through us the tax paying public of this country of the opportunity of learning from the abundance of wisdom of knowledge of those 109 Senators and 360 House of Representatives," he said.
The bow and go "short-circuit" as Chukwumerije described it had been so much derided by many Nigerians.
For sometime it was even believed that the David Mark Senate had decided to discountenance the policy. Senator Jibril Aminu, chairman of the Senate Committee on Foreign Affairs gave the first indication of the perceived change in Senate policy on October 29, 2008 during the Committee's screening of eleven ambassadorial nominees presented to the Committee.
"Senate is getting no credit for doing that at all and they (nominees) are taking it for granted," Senator Aminu said. One of our colleagues in the House of Representatives is here and if we don't give him the kind of allowance he thinks he should get he should forgive us. We are not responsible," Aminu added for emphasis.
By his point that some nominees took it for granted he was apparently referring to Senator Sanusi Daggash, the immediate past Minister of National Planning who was before then a member of the immediate past Senate.
Daggash was fingered by Senators as one of the arrow heads in the budget face off between the Yar'Adua government and the National Assembly prior to his exit from the federal cabinet.
Further affirmation of the apparent discountenance of the bow and go show was given by the Senate spokesman, Senator Ayogu Eze prior to the commencement of the screening of the ministerial nominees. At a press conference on November 19 heralding the screening, Eze said the Senate's determination on a robust screening of the ministerial nominees was agreed at a closed door session of the Senate where it was resolved that platitudes and praise singing would be done away with.
"I can tell you that the determination of the Senate is very firm and we have been trying to acquaint ourselves with the work history, life history and the antecedent of the people who are going to come before us tomorrow. I expect that Nigerians should expect a very robust and thorough screening. We are going to put it live on television channels just to make sure that nobody has anything to hide or given an umbrella to try to hide anything."
That resolve, however, turned jelly the following day as the Senate commenced the screening.
Of the four whho appeared that day, two were waved through, contrary to Eze's assertion.
The four screened were Prof. Dora Akunyili, Director General of the National Agency for Foods, Drugs Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Engineer Sani Mohammed Ndanusa, commissioner for Transportation in Niger State, Senator Ibrahim Kazuare and Alhaji Ikra Aliyu Bilbis, a former member of the House of Representatives.
The two former members of the National Assembly were asked to bow and go.
Senator Kazuare spent eight minutes for the screening while Bilbs spent three minutes before the Senate. Akunyili and Ndanusa, however, received more rigorous time at the chamber spending forty-one and fifty-one minutes respectively drawing questions from the Senators.
While Akunyili's time was almost uneventful, Ndanusa was, however, challenged on the seeming muddle in the presentation of his Curriculum Vitae circulated to Senators. The Senate President also saved him from reciting the national pledge.
The next batch of five ministerial nominees who appeared were Dr. I.Y. Lame (Bauchi), Senator Bello Jibril Gada (Sokoto), Hon. Ibrahim Isa Bio (Kwara) Prof. Babatunde Osotimehin and Dr. Shtettima Mustafa (Borno). Their appearance on Wednesday November 26, 2008 sparked the anger of Senator Chukwumerije as the trio of Lame, Gada and Bio all former members of the National Assembly were excused from drawing questions from Senators.
An omen of what was about to happen was given when the second nominee for that day, Gada came to receive his own courtesy of bow and go.
Following Dr. Lame's brief appearance during which he was asked to "bow and go" on account of his membership of the Third Republic House of Representatives, Senator Gada, presently the chairman of the PDP in Sokoto State sauntered in trumping his membership of the 1999 Senate and the largest political party in Africa, that is the PDP as some of his attributes.
Senator Chuwkwumerije responded immediately describing his attempt as subtle bribery.
"You are the second eminent person coming here to introduce himself as a member of PDP. That's good enough but to go beyond that to add the largest party in Africa. I am not disputing the fact but I am disputing the timing of the fact and the forum of expression of the fact," Senator Chukwumerije said.
"The implication of that is going out of your way to perform an act of gratification to a majority because you owe something to that majority- you want something from them and this is what I can call subtle bribery.
"Now, if you want to be a minister and you are starting with an act of subtle bribery, how are we sure that when you become minister, bribery giving and taking will not be a part of your policy," he asked the nominee.
The Senate President, however, cut him short saying that Gada's claim of membership of the 1999 Senate was a fact and that the Senate would accord the nominee the courtesy of bow and go.
"He was a Senator along with me and Oguniya, Nuhu Aliyu and the minority leader and he was in ANPP at the time and if he has now decided to join a larger party that is his democratic wish that he expressed. He only told us a statement of fact here. Senator Gada, in accordance with our practice and with our tradition, we will ask you to take a bow and go," Senator Mark submitted.
Gada as such bowed and left the chambers. He was followed by Alhaji Bio, the Speaker of the Kwara State House of Assembly who was also a member of the House of Representatives between 1999 and 2003.
As Senator Mark moved to accord him the courtesy of bow and go, Senator Chukwumerije upon a point of order on the violation of his privilege rose in opposition saying that the Senate was not a local government council as he complained that he was being deprived of his rights.
Senator Mark promptly ruled Chukwumerije out of order. But that was not to be the end, as Senator Ayogu Eze upon a Constitutional point of order (section 147 (5) of the 1999 constitution) spelling out qualifications for nomination as a minister rebuked Senator Chukwumerije, the foremost comrade in the Senate for playing to the gallery.
"If anybody stands up here to play to the gallery and say that we don't know what we are doing, that we don't want to interrogate people and that we are shortchanging the people of Nigeria, we must refer to our supreme document to correct such an impression," Senator Eze said.
"It is his right to air his view but it is also our right to protect our own integrity. And to show the people that have elected us that we are doing what they have sent us to come and do. If you are qualified to be a member of the House of Representatives, you are qualified to be a minister in Nigeria and that point must be made clear," Eze submitted.
The Senate President nevertheless dismissed Eze's point of order describing his intervention as superfluous on the fact that he had already overruled Chukwumerije.
The drama had not ended as Senator Ikechukwu Obiorah (PDP, Anambra South), undoubtedly one of the most oriental centred Senators rose to challenge Senator Eze's words on Chukwumerije.
Senator Ikechukwu Obiora (PDP, Anambra South) upon order 63 of the Senate standing rules demanded an apology from Eze.
"I do dare say that Senator Ayogu Eze's use of the word "playing to the gallery" is denigrating of a status and dignity of Senator Chukwumerije and ipso facto the Senate. I do therefore say that that phrase be withdrawn and apology tendered."
Again his submission was overruled by the Senate President as he said that he had already overruled Eze's intervention.
Following the drama, Prof. Osotimehin, the Director_General of the National Agency for the Control of AIDS appeared and drew questions on several issues on the prevalence of AIDS and his efforts to curb it through NACA.
The nominee who put the prevalence rate at about 4.1% was to raise a scare among the legislators when he said:
"Even in this hallowed ground of the National Assembly there are people living with the virus. They don't know because they have not gone for test."
Senator Akume was to express the urgency of a cure saying:
"I am talking of a cure because only very few of us can abstain," a comment that drew laughter from many Senators.
Dr. Mustafa who appeared next was taken up on his length of service to the country.
Mustafa who was 69 on the day of the screening, a two time former Minister admitted being a political contemporary of some of the nation's founding fathers such as Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe and Chief Obafemi Awolowo. He was promptly accused by some of the youngest Senators in the chamber of perpetuating himself in national service. Senator Nazif Sulieman unarguably the youngest Senator accused him of "eating his cake, his children's cake and now wanting to eat that of his grandchildren."
He, however, responded that he was not in a hurry to go as he said that the future would have to learn from today.
Senator Chukwumerije on his part described him as sounding like ancient history while Senator Mohammed Adamu Bello (ANPP, Kano) challenged him to show evidence of his past contributions to the development of agriculture, his field of specialty.
Mustafa who stood for almost one hour was, however, cheered out following his witty and sometimes poignant answers to some of the challenging questions raised against him by the younger Senators.
On Thursday, November 27 another grandee from yore, Dr. Rilwanu Lukman who is 70 years and Dr. Sam Egwu, the immediate past governor of Ebonyi State, appeared for the screening.
Egwu was at the time the only immediate past governor to have been nominated into the Yar'Adua cabinet.
Like Dr. Mustafa, Dr. Lukman drew questions from Senators on his longevity in government service, his contributions to the development of the oil industry where he repeatedly served as Minister and Presidential Adviser and on the implications of the global economic crisis on the nation.
In acquitting himself of meritorious service he said that the records of his services as a two time Minister of Petroleum, Presidential Adviser on Petroleum among others were there for anyone to see.
"I have been minister and the records are there for anyone to see, it is not for me to say. When we were there we did address the issue of power. As for the refineries when were there they worked, the records are there," he said in response to a question that his tenure left the legacy of the rot in the power sector. He also sang the old song of removal of oil subsidy saying that "the removal of subsidy as far as I am concerned is inevitable."
Dr. Egwu in his appearance was confronted with his past stormy relations with Senators from Ebonyi between 1999 and 2003. Senator Lee Maeba (PDP, Rivers Southeast) specifically challenged him on why he allegedly stopped Senators from the State including former President of the Senate, Chief Anyim Pius Anyim from returning in 2003. Responding, he pointed at his own efforts at peacemaking, facts he said could be confirmed by Senator Mark who was a member of the Anyim Senate.
"I had no problem with my senators. The former Senate President is a brother of mine who I have high respect for. There was no way I can disregard him and his position. I did everything to curry his favour and support. In fact I told him to take care of the National Assembly and we will help him take care of state."
He also disclosed how he handed over PDP election materials to the then three Senators for them to coordinate the party's primary elections in their respective senatorial zones.
"I handed over election materials and all things concerning elections to the senators for the zones. They should go and handle their zones, to determine who become who. It was generally accepted and called Ebonyi formula. If I was fighting him I would not hand over materials for elections of his zones to him," he said.
The last two nominees screened were Arc. Numo Somo Wya from Kaduna State and Alhaji Jibril Maigari from Yobe State. They were screened last Wednesday December 2, 2008 on the same day that President Yar'Adua presented the 2009 budget. The budget presentation largely overshadowed the screening.
However, the bow and go policy which is itself a unique phenomenon of the Nigeria Senate remains one of the most vexed issues of the whole screening exercise.
Senate spokesman, Senator Eze in a robust defence of the criticisms against him flowing from his volte face on the issue told Vanguard last Tuesday.
"A lot of people have aired comments on it and I know those comments are wrongly reflected. People did not get me contextually," as he said that the Senate only meant that the verses of praise to nominees would not be condoned.
"I was not talking about breaking from our tradition. We have a tradition, if you have been a senator or member of the National Assembly, you pass through. That tradition stays."
Though the level of praise singing has been greatly curtailed, many Nigerians are as yet still critical of the bow and go tradition, a practice some critics say give untested and unqualified persons access to control the nation's commonwealth.
Bamidele Aturu, a civil rights activist and lawyer in his dismissal of the Senate screening told Vanguard:
"The Senators cant do better since they belong to the same cliques with those screened. I am disappointed at the careless manner of the screening. The impression is that of cronyism above national interest."
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