With yesterday’s adoption of Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila and others as principal officers, peace seems to have returned to the House of Representatives. But, for the Senate, the search sure continues, writes VICTOR OLUWASEGUN, GBADE OGUNWALE and ERIC IKHILAE
House of Representatives Speaker Yakubu Dogara and his challenger Femi Gbajabiamila cut the image of two friends who had not seen for some time on Monday. It was at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, where President Muhammadu Buhari had hosted them to a peace meeting. The duo talked, joked and laughed. At the end of the meeting, Nigerians were told that in a few hours the crisis in the House of Representatives would be over. Many took the claim with a pinch of salt and almost all major news medium reported yesterday that the meeting did not provide the desired result.
Yesterday was an eye-opener for many who doubted the All Progressives Congress (APC) leadership who saw the end of the crisis. Gbajabiamila was yesterday announced the House Leader as the party had wanted. Alhassan Doguwa, who was earlier chosen by Dogara, did not object. He accepted to be Deputy House Leader.
The magic behind the resolution of the crisis, The Nation learnt, is no other than Buhari, who Dogara decided to defer to. Dogara allowed the caucuses of the APC to have input in the choice of principal officers.
The horse-trading ran late into the wee hours of yesterday and at the end, all parties decided that it was time to face the business of law-making.
The Chairman of the House Ad-hoc Committee on Information, Mallam Sanni Zorro, who spoke exclusively last night with our correspondent said: “It was the triumph of democracy, the House is the winner. The House has demonstrated political maturity because politics is about give and take.
“President Buhari is not only a leader but a game changer. Since 1999, past Presidents had always installed the leaders of the National Assembly but President Buhari decided not to interfere.
“There was pressure on him to interfere but he refused. It was only when the crisis got to a critical stage that he intervened. Yet, he did not impose his will. The party also did not use force.”
Zorro praised the Speaker for championing peace in the House.
He added: “To resolve the crisis, Dogara came up with a final consensus formula which took into consideration the interest of critical stakeholders including the nation, the presidency, regional politics, zoning and all those things that divided members.
“It is a win-win situation. There was no winner, no loser. With the crisis amicably resolved, the House is now open for business, legislative activities and engagement with public, private and non-governmental actors.
For the Senate, however, the search for peace continues. Like the House of Representatives, it resumed yesterday. At the sitting, Senator Kabiru Marafa tried to nullify the election of Senate President Abubakar Bukola Saraki and Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu, on the ground that they were not duly elected.
Marafa (Zamfara Central) and a member of the Senate Unity Forum opposed to Saraki’s emergence, draw the attention of the Senate to what he described as an obvious error committed by the Senate during the inauguration of the 8th Senate on June 9.
The lawmaker, who raised order 1 (a)and (b) ; 13 1 and 2; and order 3 (2), said he was guided by the ruling of Saraki on June 24th that the Senate rules in force is the Senate Standing Order/ Rule 2015.
He said: “I am guided by your (Saraki) ruling of June 24 that the Senate Standing Rules in force is the Senate Standing Order 2015 as amended. I also rely on the wise counseling of Senator Ike Ekweremadu on the issue. Order 1 (a) talks about the proceedings of the senate in accordance with the book.”
The senator said going by the rules of the Senate in force, Order 13 ( 1 ) states that on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays except the second and third Fridays of the month, committee meetings are to hold between 9:00am and 12 noon.
He also referred to Order 13 ( 2 ) which states that on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, the Senate shall meet at 2pm and unless previously adjourned, it shall sit until 6pm .
He added that a substantive motion has to be moved by the leader of the senate or a senator acting in that capacity that the senate be adjourned by 6pm.
Marafa said Ekweremadu said the Senate rules had come into effect and that for them to be amended, order 110 had to be followed.
“I want to posit that the activities of the Senate on the 9th of June stands because it was covered by the proclamation of Mr. President which states that the proceedings of the chamber shall start by 10:00am.
“But all other activities of the Senate from the time but not limited to the oath of office, is a nullity because it was not done within the time frame stated in the rule book. The activities of the Senate on the 23rd and 24th are equally a nullity.”
But, Saraki cut him to size. He ruled that the issue of timing of the proceedings of the Senate Marafa raised would be referred to the Clerk to the National Assembly, Alhaji Salisu Maikasuwa.
He said: “You came under three orders. Orders 1 and order 13 as regards to the timing of seating will be referred to the Clerk. Your interpretation of the Order on nomination of principal officers is not in order.”
He subsequently ruled Marafa out of order.
Yesterday, another amended version of the Senate Standing Order/Rule 2015 was distributed to Senators. The new rules essentially corrected the timing errors Marafa referred to in his point of order.
Saraki also asked members to pick up forms where they would signify not more than five committees in which they wish to serve. Significantly, Marafa and others case seeking to prevent Saraki from constituting committees came up yesterday at the Federal High Court in Abuja. Justice Gabriel Kolawole of the Federal High Court, Abuja declined the request of the five senators to restrain the Senate from constituting its standing and ad hoc committees.
The judge, in a ruling yesterday, refused an ex-parte motion filed by Senators Abu Ibrahim, Marafa, Ajayi Boroffice, Olugbenga Ashafa and Suleiman Hunkuni – on the ground that it was without merit, because there was no urgency in the issue raised by the plaintiffs.
The five senators, who had earlier filed a substantive suit marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/651/2015, brought the ex-parte motion, containing the prayer, and which their lawyer, Mamman Osuman (SAN) argued yesterday.
They said their prayer, which is to stop the constitution of the Senate committees pending the determination of their application for interlocutory injunction, was informed by the fact that the Senate was operating with an illegitimate and unconstitutional Senate Standing ?Orders 2015 including using it to conduct the election of June 9 which produced its current leadership.
The plaintiffs alleged that the Senate Standing ?Orders 2015 was “contrived” from the amendment of the 2011 version of the Orders without following its relevant provisions and those of the Constitution.
They argued that the said amendment was in breach of the “prescriptive procedures” stipulated by the extant provisions of section 60 of the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended) and Rule 110(1), (2), (3), (4) and (5) of the Senate Standing Orders 2011 (as amended).
The plaintiffs are of the view that the election of the current leadership of the Senate and other proceedings based on the unconstitutional Orders were null and void.
In his ruling, Justice Kolawole held that there was no urgency in the case because the plaintiffs had known about the purported illegal Standing Orders since June 9 when it was allegedly used for the election, but chose to file the ex parte motion barely 24 hours to resumption of the Senate from its about one month recess.
He further held that the court would hardly intervene in a matter relating to the application or misapplication of the internal rules of the Senate or the legislature when such action did not amount to “substantial infraction” of the provisions of the Constitution.
Justice Kolawole was of the view that, in matters relating to disputes over the “the decision reached by a majority of the members of the Senate”, aggrieved members of the arm of government could only seek a redress by mobilising their colleagues to reverse such decision.
He held that in various appellate courts’ decisions, courts had been warned “to be wary” in intervening in such internal legislative activities, let alone granting an order to restrain the activities of that arm of government at the stage of an ex parte hearing.
“In the light of the above analysis, I will be unable to grant the ex parte application dated July 24 and only filed on July 27, 2015 ?by only five out of the 109 senators constitutionally elected to the upper legislative chamber,” Justice Kolawole said.
He ordered the plaintiffs to serve the motion on notice, seeking the same prayer contained in their ex parte motion, on the defendants – Saraki, Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu; the Clerks of the National Assembly and the Senate and the National Assembly.
Justice Kolawole fixed August 5 for hearing of the plaintiffs’ motion on notice.
The plaintiffs are, in the substantive suit, seeking among others, the declaration of the Senate Standing Orders 2015 as null and void for being a product of an alleged illegitimate and unconstitutional amendment of the 2011 version of the standing orders.
They also want the court to nullify the amended order as well as the election of Saraki as the Senate President and that of Ike Ekweremadu as the Deputy Senate President, ?for being products of the alleged illegal orders.
If Saraki has his way, the aggrieved senators should just accept that the battle was won and lost. He enjoined them yesterday to stop bickering and face legislative duties.
In his welcome address at the resumption of plenary, Saraki reminded the senators that Nigerians elected them was to deliver on their mandate and not to struggle for positions on the floor.
Acknowledging the enormity of the hydra- headed challenges facing the country, Saraki spoke of the urgent need to address these challenges.
He said: “Distinguished colleagues, we have our work cut out for us. We cannot afford to frolic. Nigerians did not give us our mandate to come and pursue leadership; their mandate was for us to pursue governance and bring solutions to their burning issues.
“It is time we remind ourselves of the solemn promise to deliver to our people real change. Leadership is secondary to our primary responsibility of good governance.
“As Senate President, you have given me responsibility to ensure that our primary responsibility is placed on the table, not under the table. Nigerians did not put their lives on the line for politics but for the delivery of good governance.
“My distinguished colleagues, the job of changing our corporate destiny starts today. Though the challenges are huge, they are not insurmountable.
“Let these challenges inspire us as leaders to show courage, statesmanship and valour. We have taken the right first steps out, we must now set out at dawn. We do not have all the time; indeed our clock is ticking.
“Distinguished colleagues, it is time; let’s get started and deliver meaningful change to our people.”
Saraki lamented the dwindling national revenue profile, which he blamed on falling oil prices, oil theft, indiscriminate granting of import duty waivers, dubious concessions and grants.
He continued: “Distinguished colleagues, our country is passing through a difficult time. We cannot afford to watch the mind-boggling leakages in our oil receipt to go on. This Senate is in tandem with Mr. President on this and is determined to turn every stone and shift every rock to ensure that all revenues due to the country from oil are recovered.
“We are not the only oil producing country in the world; oil theft cannot therefore become an acceptable part of our oil business.
“Furthermore, Nigerians are tired of the inadequacies in the power sector and want to see a reinvigorated power sector capable of delivering enough energy to power the new Nigerian economy.
“Our people dream to see a more open economy, they want to see legislative instruments that will help to open and stimulate private sector investment in infrastructure development, and enhance the ease of doing business in the country.
“Nigerians want to see the National Assembly tackle these obscenities in our revenue systems as they deny our people the right to good governance.”
He added: “Make no mistakes about it, the aim of these militant groups is simple; to test our resolve and disintegrate our unity. But let me reiterate the readiness and willingness of the National Assembly to support and work with President Muhammadu Buhari to comprehensively rout Boko Haram.
“We join Mr. President in saying that we will defeat terrorism in our country and region, because we have the will to win this fight. Our resolve is collective, we urge all friends of Nigeria, including the United States and the entire international community, to join us.”
For his opponents, who feel sad that he has exposed the party to ridicule by rejecting its position, he can tell all that to the marines. They certainly are not done with him. Not even his appointment of a key member of the group, Senator Barnabas Gemade, to chair an adhoc committee seems to have achieved any end.
The days to come will sure prove that all is not well with the Senate despite the vote of confidence passed on him by some 80 senators yesterday.
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