Amaechi confirmed, splits Senate

Amaechi confirmed, splits Senate
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By Our Reporter  on October 30, 2015 
•17 other nominees scale through as Akpabio defends PDP lawmakers’ walk-out
…No division in APC, says Lai Mohammed
From Fred Itua, Abuja
As expected, Senators of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), yesterday subdued their Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) counterparts in a supremacy contest to confirm the nomination of former governor of Rivers state, Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, as a minister.  The Senate also confirmed 17 other nominees.
 Trouble started soon after the Chamber resumed plenary in the morning. The report of the Committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions on Amaechi was circulated in the chamber to lawmakers including PDP Senators, who were battle-ready to frustrate the embattled former Rivers state governor.
 Skeptical that there might be an uproar, Senate President Bukola Saraki immediately called for a closed-door session soon after the confirmation of the chairman and commissioners of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), which preceded the confirmation of the ministers-designate.
 The Senate went into the session at about 1.53pm. It lasted for one hour and 17 minutes. The Senate President spoke briefly after the session. He said: “The Senate in a closed-session reviewed the debates of the ministerial nominee.”
Thereafter, the Senate Leader, Ali Ndume, moved that the chamber dissolved into a Committee of the Whole to consider for confirmation, the nomination of the 18 ministers-designate. He was seconded by the Minority Leader, Godswill Akpabio. The confirmation started at about 3.18pm. It went on smoothly until Akpabio interjected soon after Prof. Anwuka’s name was called for confirmation. He said there were issues that were yet to be resolved. Akpabio was countered by another PDP Senator from Imo State, Nneji Achonu. Achonu told his colleagues that the petitions had been withdrawn. The Senate President thereafter ruled Akpabio out of order and confirmed Prof. Anwuka’s nomination.
 After the brief rowdy session, the Committee Chairman on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions, Senator Samuel Anyanwu, was called to read the contents of the report on Amaechi. He said the report was signed by seven out of the 11 members.
 He said since the matter under review was in the court, the committee agreed that the confirmation of Amaechi be suspended, pending when a valid court judgment on the issue would be delivered or the case withdrawn.
 He barely concluded when Ndume said further action should be suspended on Amaechi’s confirmation since the case is already before a competent court of law. Akpabio who rose up to amend Ndume’s motion before seconding, was booed.
 Akpabio said: “We had said that we were going to make comments after the conclusion of the whole process about Amaechi. I want to move a motion that the Senate do allow a proper discussion of the motion before us.”
He thereafter declined to second Ndume’s motion that action be stayed on the confirmation of Amaechi as a minister. But Ndume responded: “My motion is still standing. We need to put it to a vote.”
Again, the Senate Leader was deflated by Akpabio. He argued: “The role of the leader is to lead the Senate. What we are saying is that we should consider the report of the committee. Legally speaking, we had agreed here that whenever a report on any nominee was presented, we should debate it. The report has been presented. What the Leader is trying to do is to stop us from debating the report.”
At this time, Saraki intervened, saying: “As we have already agreed, we will take the comments after which we will go back to the motion moved by the Senate Leader for consideration.”
An overwhelmed Saraki who appeared to be in a fix reacted: “The earlier speaker raised an issue bordering on the issue of constitution and indictment. The report of the committee is silent on that.”
Biodun Olijimi, a PDP Senator from Ekiti State who backed her colleagues said: “There is a moral burden not just on the Senate, but on the president of the federal republic of Nigeria who is riding on the issue of corruption. We must be sure that a court of law absorbs him before we can confirm him in this Senate. The majority may have its way, but Nigerians will know that this government is not ready to fight corruption.”
Barnabas Gemade, an APC Senator from Benue State, differed. He was still speaking when all the PDP Senators walked out of the chamber. Their action was ignored by the Senate President who was buoyed by a loud voice support from APC Senators.
 Left alone without any opposition, the APC Senators had their day and unanimously confirmed the nomination of Amaechi.
 Meanwhile, the other 17 nominees that were confirmed without any hiccups include Mr. Adebayo Shittu (Oyo), Mrs Khadija Abba Ibrahim (Yobe), Heineken Lokpobiri (Bayelsa), Claudius Omoleye Daramola (Ondo), Baba Shehuri Mustapha (Borno), Ocholi Enojo James (Kogi), Adewole Isaac Folorunso (Osun) and Bawa Bwari (Niger).
 Others are Geoffrey Onyeama (Enugu), Zainab Ahmed (Kaduna), Mansur Mohammed Dan Ali (Zamfara), Usani Usani Uguru (Cross River), Okechukwu Eyinna Enelamah (Abia), Anthony Anwuka Gozie (Imo), Mohammed Musa Bello (Adamawa), Adamu Adamu      (Bauchi) and Aisha Abubakar (Sokoto).
 The angry PDP Senators immediately left Senate Hearing Room One where they addressed journalists. Minority Leader, Akpabio, while reacting to the debacle on the floor of the Senate, told journalists that the PDP caucus would never in support of Amaechi’s confirmation.
 Speaking to reporters after the protest walk-out, Akpabio said PDP Senators boycotted the confirmation of Amaechi because rules were not followed.
 He stated that the Senate’s rule is to stay action in any matter in court, adding that since the nomination of  Amaechi is a subject of litigation, the Senate should have suspended action until the court mattes are resolved.
 Akpabio said the PDP’s protest was not against the nomination, but aimed at ensuring that things are done according to due process.
 In his reaction, Majority Leader, Senator Ndume said the walk-out of PDP Senators did not affect the decision of Senate therafter.
 He said that the confirmation of Amaechi stands.
 Reacting to the confirmation, the APC said it was a demonstration that there is no longer division within the party.
 In a statement issued yesterday by the spokesman, Lai Mohammed, the APC said: “The cohesion and unity exhibited by the APC Senators on Thursday (yesterday), have shown that our legislators are ready to work with the executive and the party to ensure that the agenda of the party is implemented for the benefit of all Nigerians.”