Nigeria: Screening – Senate Skips Aganga, Ando

Abdul-Rahman Abubakar

1 July 2011

The Senate yesterday confirmed the appointments of former minister of National Planning, Dr. Shamsudeen Usman, former Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Mohammed Bello Adoke (SAN), former Information Minister Labaran Maku and four other nomnees as ministers.

Other nominees confirmed yesterday are; former Solid Minerals minister, Architect Mohammed Musa Sada, former Transport minister, Alhaji Yusuf Suleiman and first time nominees; Hajiya Zainab Maina and Mrs. Stella Oduah-Ogiemwonyi.

The Senate skipped the names of former Finance Minister, Olusegun Aganga (Lagos) and Obadiah Ando (Taraba) on the list of nominees to be screened contained in the Order Paper.

Also speaking during the confirmation hearing, Senate President David Mark said the Senate will no longer allow some government agencies including the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and similar agencies to spend public funds without appropriation.

Mark told his colleagues that “I want to assure you that we allowed them this time but, I want to say that it will never happen again.”

Speaking when he appeared before the Senate, Dr. Usman lamented the abandonment of the Ajaokuta steel project, saying it has become a symbol of the many failed development attempts made by the country.

According to him “After spending over $5 billion on the project, if you are looking for a grave yard of economic policies in Nigeria, go to Ajaokuta and you will weep for this country. The major culprits for the problem are lack of consistency and continuity in government policies.”

Dr. Usman said the vision 2020 can be realised as the country is currently ranked 39 in the world, saying the programme requires N32 trillion for implementation.

On the issue of Islamic banking, the minister designate said the controversy over the introduction of zero interest banking system saying “it is just a sort of a storm in a tea cup.”

Also speaking when he appeared before the Senate, Alhaji Yusuf Suleiman said government has completed about 80 percent dredging of the lower River Niger to boost the transport sector of the economy.

He also said rehabilitation of the railway lines from Lagos to Kano has reached 70 percent while work on the eastern line from Port-Harcourt to Maiduguri has reached advanced satge while modernisation of the railway has commenced.

The Senate also made a U-turn on its resolve not to allow any nominee to bow and go when former President of the National Council of Women Societies (NCWS), Hajiya Zainab Maina was confirmed without answering a single question.

Another female nominee, Stella Ogiemwonyi told the Senate that the campaign of President Goodluck Jonathan was run through donations from individuals.

Meanwhile, indications emerged yesterday that Senator Joy Emodi from Anambra State might have been appointed by President Jonathan as Special Adviser on National Assembly matters. But there was no immediate confirmation.

Senate President David Mark referred to Emodi as Presidential Liaison to the Senate during ministerial confirmation hearing. Emodi was in the fifth and sixth Senate and has been coordinating the screening exercise for ministerial nominees.

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