BEVERLY HILLS, March 30, (THEWILL) – The Nigerian Senate has welcomed the Federal Executive Council, FEC’s composition of a presidential committee that would interface with it to douse tension between the executive and legislative arms of government.
Speaking with journalists on Thursday, the Senate spokesman, Abdullahi Sabi, assured that the upper legislative chamber would cooperate with the peace committee chaired by the Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo.
Recall that on Tuesday, the Senate protested retention of Ibrahim Magu as acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, despite the rejection of his nomination, two weeks ago.
On this ground, the lawmakers refused to consider the communication from the presidency requesting confirmation for the nomination of 27 Resident Electoral Commissioners, RECs, for the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, ahead of the 2019 general elections.
This may have been part of what prompted the following day’s FEC meeting, presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari, to set up a cabinet committee that will proffer a solution to the crisis between the two arms of government. The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed made this known to newsmen after the meeting.
In its reaction, the Senate said, “The Executive Peace Initiative is a welcome development. We have heard about the initiative by President Muhammadu Buhari, in setting up a Presidential Committee on Executive-Legislature Relations to be headed by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo.
“This initiative is a welcome development. It is a good step in the right direction.
“Senate, in particular, and the National Assembly, in general, is ready to co-operate with the group to resolve all grey areas standing on the way of the smooth working relationship needed to deepen our fledgling democracy and ensure good governance for the benefits of Nigerians.”
Abdullahi insisted that the actions of the Red Chamber were always motivated by the need to entrench democracy and promote good governance but lamented that such actions had been misinterpreted by some persons.
This was as he decried the penchant of appointees of the president to always resort to use of uncomplimentary remarks against the Senate.
About the Author
