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On Tuesday, there was a commotion and some little drama in the Senate as senators continued to interview President Bola Tinubu’s nominations for ministerial positions.
Nasir el-Rufai, the former governor of Kaduna State, evaded the Senate’s wrath when Senator Sunday Karimi (APC Kogi West) moved against him due to an alleged petition to block his screening. This is when the drama began.
“Mr. President, I have a petition written against the nominee over the issue of insecurity in Southern Kaduna when he was governor,” Senator Karimi stated, revealing that the letter, which he was holding in a brown envelope, touches on the topic of insecurity. I would like to read the petition if it is okay.
Most senators protested the supposed petition with loud “no, no, no” chants as El-Rufai prepared to speak about it, but the Senate President intervened.
A number of complaints were presented against some of the ministerial nominations, according to Senate President Godswill Akpabio, who declined to accept the plea. He added that the senate is not allowed to consider petitions against any nominee.
“This is not the appropriate forum for petition consideration; we will sit with the petitions later and refer them to appropriate authorities,” he stated. Please bow and leave, my brother.
El-Rufai had previously listed his accomplishments while serving as the governor and former minister of the Federal Capital Territory, or FCT, and then he responded to queries from the MPs.
However, Senator Suleiman Kwari (PDP Kaduna North) pleaded with his fellow senators to let the outgoing governor stand and go.
El-Rufai’s nomination for ministerial confirmation was endorsed by all three of Kaduna State’s senators, all of whom are incidentally PDP opponents.
Olawale Edun, a nominee from Ogun State and a former commissioner for finance in Lagos State, was interrogated by the Senate for more than an hour, during which he asserted that Nigeria has no excuse for poverty given the country’s abundance of natural resources and people labor.
The parliamentarians specifically interrogated Edun, forcing him to respond to questions as though he had been named the Minister of Finance.
Given its enormous people and material resources, he reminded the senators, Nigeria had all it needed to succeed. He emphasized that all that was needed to put the nation on the path of economic growth and development was a clear vision and commitment.
When Edun served as commissioner in Tinubu’s cabinet before becoming governor, he claimed he accepted the request to serve with the intention of continuing Lagos’ success narrative.
The economist supported ending gasoline subsidies and unifying the foreign exchange system, but he also acknowledged that both actions had caused significant harm to the populace.
Edun expressed hope that the hardships will soon give way to benefits and long-term economic growth.
Musa Dangiwa, a Katsina State ministerial contender who was allegedly hurriedly paying his taxes for the previous three years just last week due to his nomination, was also given a reasonable amount of time by the Senate.
Barrister Hannatu Musawa, the final candidate for the day’s screening and the Special Adviser to the President on Arts, Culture, and Entertainment, gave vent to her feelings as tears streamed down her face.
The Senate President interrupted her lengthy opening comments by stating that she was not giving a presidential speech.
As soon as Akpabio halted speaking, Elisha Abbo, the senator for the Adamawa North Senatorial District, stood up after being recognized and appealed with his fellow senators to bow and leave because she is a well-known Nigerian with an impressive resume.
The majority of lawmakers present at the meeting gave their assent to his prayer as the Senate President slammed the gavel.
Nine of the 28 nominees were able to pass the Senate’s screening process in total, and the other five would wait until Wednesday.