Obanikoro: Senate in shouting match

                           
Attempt to enlist the support of opposition senators for the screening and confirmation of Senator Musiliu Obanikoro as a minister met a brickwall yesterday, it was learnt.

The Senate started its plenary with a lengthy closed session presided over by Senate President David Mark.

Sources at the session told our correspondents that top on the agenda was an appeal by Mark that the Senate should maintain its tradition of “bow and go” usually accorded former members of the National Assembly.

“Bow and go” is the tradition of simply asking a ministerial nominee to bow before senators, who would refrain from asking him questions.

Mark, it was learnt, told his colleagues that Obanikoro should be given the privilege.

Opposition Senators and a few Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) senators were said to have insisted that they should be allowed to grill the former minister of state for Defence because of the circumstances surrounding his nomination.

He is among those whose voices were taped while planning to use the military to rig last year’s Ekiti State governorship election.

The opposition lawmakers were also said to have reminded the Senate President that the suit filed against Obanikoro’s nomination was still pending in a Lagos court.

Those opposed to Obanikoro’s screening were also said to have insisted that it will be sub judice for the Senate to act on a matter that is pending before a court.

Mark was said to have reasoned that if Obanikoro was made to answer questions, the tradition of the Senate would have been destroyed.

At that point, a shouting match broke out between those who wanted to maintain the status quo of “bow and go” and those who insisted on drilling Obanikoro especially on his alleged role in the Ekiti governorship poll rigging plot.

The unruly situation was said to have lasted for over 30 minutes after which Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu reportedly calmed frayed nerves.

The Senators were said to have agreed to screen some of the nominees and to defer Obanikoro’s screening .

Some of the opposition lawmakers vowed to resist any attempt to either cajole or cow them to support Obanikoro’s screening and confirmation.

The nominees screened included Senator Patricia Akwashiki (Nasarawa State), who was asked to “bow and go” Prof. Nicholas Akise Ada (Benue State), Col. Augustine Okwudiri Akobundu (Abia State) and Mr. Fidelis Nwankwo (Ebonyi State).

The Senate adjourned till Tuesday.

Apart from Obanikoro, Mrs. Hauwa’u Lawan (Jigawa State), Mr. Kenneth Kobani (River State) and Senator Joel Danlami Ikenya (Taraba State) were yet to be screened.

After the closed session, Mark merely read out the names of screened nominees and said the Senate would continue the screening of the remaining nominees next week.