Saudi authorities have announced that they have broken up an organisation linked to the Islamic State (IS) group that has been terrorizing many parts of the world. The authorities also announced the arrest of 431 of the members of the group, most of whom are Saudis.
Authorities have “managed over the past few weeks to destroy an organisation made of a cluster of cells, which is linked to the terrorist Daesh organisation,” the interior ministry said, using the Arabic acronym for IS. [myad]
I have continued to watch with keen interest the game that is playing out in the Upper Chamber of the National Assembly over allegation that the Senate Standing Orders 2011 (as amended) was changed without the knowledge of the Seventh session of the Senate under the leadership of Senator David Mark. The Unity Forum, which lost the senate leadership contest to Like Minds group, adverted attention to the issue on the floor, and would not allow it to be swept under the carpet despite the ruling by the Senate President, Bukola Saraki, on a point of order by Senator Kabiru Marafa, that the chamber has only one rule book: “That is Senate Standing Orders 2015 (as amended).” Conventionally, every new session of the Senate, since 1999, had its rule book, not completely different from the previous one, but benefitting, where and when necessary, from some minimal or far-reaching amendments. Such amendments are usually ratified in plenary by the Senate. The Senate Standing Orders 2015 (as amended), the document which was circulated to members of the Eighth session during the June 9, 2015 inauguration did not benefit from such ratification. Agreed that the rule book is the business of every Senate session as argued during an interview session last Tuesday on CHANNELS TV by Solomon Ita-Enang (former Chair of the Rules and Business Committee of the Seventh senate); but the Eighth session, at the point of inauguration, had not had the opportunity to look at the book and fashion out necessary amendments. I remember it was the Fifth session of the Senate that amended the 2007 rule book (that effectively accords ranking or cognate experience pre-eminent consideration in leadership appointments) which became the 2011 rule book, as amended, in the Sixth session. Did the Seventh session, which could have amended the document, do so? If it did not, the purported 2015 rules book could not have superseded the 2011 rule book because the Eighth session, which was yet to be inaugurated, could not have amended the 2015 rules book that was circulated on June 9, 2015. That was the point Marafa was making and I am at great pains to fault his position. Marafa had, through Orders 110, 3(e) (i), made his pungent intervention: “Any senator desiring to amend any part of the Rules or alter any clause shall give notice to such amendment and write to the President of the Senate, giving details of the proposed amendment. The President of the Senate shall, within seven working days of the receipt of the notice, cause the amendment to be printed and be circulated to members. Thereafter, it shall be printed in the Order Paper of the Senate.” To strengthen his position, he had claimed ignorance of any such notice, receipt of notice, printing and circulation of the notice to members and its subsequent printing in the Order Paper. Read him: “I have Senate Standing Orders 2011 (as amended), which I was given when I was sworn-in as a senator on the 6th of June, 2011. When I was sworn in two weeks ago (June 9, 2015), I was handed another Senate Standing Orders 2015 (as amended). I did say that day that I cannot recall… and I used the opportunity provided by the break we went-the two weeks break-to go through the Hansards of the Seventh Assembly and I could not find anywhere these rules were amended or changed. This book (Senate Standing Orders 2011) clearly spells out how it can be amended. And that is the order I have just read….” Point well made! No explanation to counter his position has been sanguineous enough to achieve that effect. The laborious attempt made by the Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, did not fly in the face of simple logic. His explanation, perhaps, at best, amounted to what could safely be described as illogicality of logic. Read him: “I would like to offer explanation to my friend, Senator Marafa. He’s just four years old in the Senate. Some of us have been here for 12 years. From 1999 till date, this Senate has come with its own rules. There was Senate rules book of 1999, 2003, 2007, 2011 and now 2015. The reason is quite simple. If you look at Section 64 of the 1999 Constitution, it says that the Senate and House of Representatives shall each stand dissolved at the expiration of a period of four years, commencing from the date of the first sitting of the house. “So, the implication is that the rule he was referring to ended with the Senate on the 6th of June. That is why we had Senate Rule Book of 1999, 2003, 2007, 2011 and now 2015. If he is seeking to amend any Senate rule, he can only amend the existing one, which is the one for 2015. So, between now and 2019, this particular rule will govern us and can be amended in the manner he has suggested. Between now and until after 2019, we are going to have another Senate Rule of 2019. That has been the process and procedure since 1999. And it is based on the provisions of the Constitution….” Who amended the 2011 Senate Standing Orders to produce the Senate Standing Orders 2015 (as amended)? When and how was it done? Did it follow laid-down procedure as circumscribed in the extant rule? Can you now see what I meant about the feebleness of the attempt to counter Marafa’s position? These are the issues the Senate should address. I believe the Senate knows the truth. I can understand that there is a whiff of desperation in the ambience of the Upper Chamber in the lingering battle for leadership position, which Saraki is currently annexing. What the Unity Forum, which promoted the candidature of Ahmad Lawan, is aiming at through Marafa’s gambit is to vitiate the moral basis of the current leadership of the Senate. This explains the petition the group sent to the Police alleging forgery of the rule book and requesting investigations into it. What should have been an internal affair of the Senate has now been externalised due to the grudge fight for position. The vitiation of the moral basis of the Senate leadership under Saraki would be possible as long as it can be proved that the process of inauguration was grounded on the rules contained in the controversial Senate Standing Orders 2015 (as amended). Even if the argument is valid and a basis for interrogation of the malfeasance of changing the standing rule book arbitrarily is established, how should the Police have responded and proceeded in their investigations? Expectedly, the Police had already had friendly chats with the Clerk to the National Assembly (CNA), Alhaji Salisu Abubakar Maikasuwa, over the matter. The Police probably felt that being the head of the National Assembly bureaucracy, and especially being the one who performed the inauguration, he should be able to speak about the alleged forgery of the Senate Standing Orders 2015. I do not share the view that the Police erred by speaking with Maikasuwa. That was the best thing to do in order not to progress in error. That meeting, even though one is not privy to the discussions, might have provided an opportunity for him to enlighten the Police officers about the workings of the Legislature and who are the custodians of the rules of the Senate and the House of Representatives are. And once that is established, it should have, by now, been clear to the Police where to fish for the truth in the murky waters of leadership tussle in the Senate. Sifting the submission of Adetutu Folasade-Koyi in her piece titled “Who changed the rules?” under Senatewatch Column of Tuesday, July 14, 2015, I concur that Maikasuwa is not a lawmaker; that he is a civil servant who has no business with parliamentary rules and procedures; and that he is not even the custodian of the rules of both chambers of the National Assembly. I hope the Police are now well informed as to where to go in furtherance of their investigation in quest for the truth. I also concur with one Ariyo Dare’s views published in a number of national newspapers on Sunday, July 12, 2015 about the overall role that Maikasuwa played to ensure that the National Assembly inauguration on June 9, 2015 was not stalled. Dare’s views came against the backdrop of the subtle attack on Maikasuwa by Abbah Mahmood in his back page Thursday Column in Leadership of July 9, 2015 wherein, to use Dare’s words “he (Mahmood) magisterially declared in his treatise” that Maikasuwa yaci kasuwarsa kawai (Maikasuwa just ate his market). But after explaining Maikasuwa’s impartial and constitutionally-guided role during the inauguration, Dare had countered Mahmod thus “Maikasuwa ya gyara kasuwan democratiyan Nigeria (Maikasuwa has succeeded in helping to strengthen democracy in Nigeria).” I find it difficult to disagree with Dare.
Ojeifo, Editor-in-Chief of The Congresswatch magazine, sent this piece from Abuja via ojwonderngr@yahoo.com[myad]
When they meet at the White House Monday, U.S. President Barack Obama and his Nigerian counterpart, Muhammadu Buhari will no doubt discuss ways of beating Islamist extremist group Boko Haram. But their second, equally important priority is ending the strain in U.S.-Nigerian relations that has hampered efforts to fight the militants.
U.S.-Nigerian relations clearly declined during the administration of former president Goodluck Jonathan, who Buhari defeated in Nigeria’s March election, said E.J. Hogendoorn, deputy program director for Africa at the International Crisis Group, a Washington-based global analysis firm.
The main problem, Hogendoorn said, was the inability of the U.S. and Nigeria to cooperate in the battle against Boko Haram.
“There was a lot of willingness in the U.S. government to try to provide assistance to the Nigerian government security forces,” Hogendoorn told VOA.
“Some of that was taken, much of it wasn’t,” he added. “That had to do with personalities and the [Jonathan] administration itself. Buhari has clearly signaled he wants to start over. He’s fired all the senior military chiefs…. And the fact that he’s here relatively soon into his administration suggests he wants to discuss seriously with the U.S. where they can work together.”
“That said, the U.S. needs to recognize that Nigeria is a proud nation and that we will need to treat them as partners rather than as someone that can be lectured to,” Hogendoorn said.
Boko Haram not the only concern
President Obama reached out to Buhari immediately after he was declared the winner of the election, congratulating him on his victory and thanking him for his efforts to ensure Nigeria’s election process was peaceful. He also called Jonathan and thanked him for conceding the poll and calling on supporters to accept the outcome.
The White House has said Presidents Obama and Buhari will discuss “shared priorities” at their meeting Monday, including cooperation to advance a “holistic, regional approach to combating Boko Haram” and Nigeria’s efforts to advance important economic and political reforms.
“Unfortunately, there are major concerns about the Niger Delta [region] and how stable that will be,” said Hogendoorn. “There are major concerns about the economic stability of the Nigerian state with the decline in oil prices, and problems with chronic corruption. My understanding is that the U.S. government is discussing all these issues with President Buhari.”
But Boko Haram unquestionably remains the top concern. Nigeria and four nearby countries are currently setting up a multi-nation task force to fight the extremists, who have periodically launched attacks in Cameroon, Chad and Niger. Earlier this year, those three countries helped the Nigerian army drive Boko Haram out of towns and cities it had seized across northeastern Nigeria.
But after a short lull, the militant group resumed its attacks soon after President Buhari assumed office on May 29. In one of the largest attacks blamed on the group, twin blasts rocked a market in the northeastern town of Gombe on Thursday, killing nearly 50 people.
“I think the real issue for President Obama and President Buhari is how do you sequence the enormous challenges that President Buhari is facing,” Hogendoorn said. [myad]
The Nasarawa State government has suspended its tradition of sponsoring pilgrims to the holy land of Saudi Arabia.
The decision was taken as a result of the financial crunch plaguing the state due to dwindling revenue.
Executive Secretary of the Nasarawa State Muslim Pilgrim Welfare Board, Alhaji Abubakar Hassan Nalaraba, who addressed newsmen in Lafia today, said that Governor Umaru Tanko Al-Makura’s decision is aimed at allowing him weigh the prevailing economic situation of the state.
He however revealed that the welfare board has succeeded in retaining the accommodations allotted to pilgrims from the state in the holy land last year as tents and other accommodations meant for Nasarawa pilgrims in the Saudi Arabia were all in good shape.
“The board has approved this year’s Hajj fare at N790,500 per pilgrim which include forms, suitcases, medical screening, uniforms, hijab and Arafat day feeding expenses in order to compliment the National Hajj Commission’s efforts.”
He said that the variation in this year’s Hajj fare rate compared to that of the previous year which was N715,000 was occasioned by the high exchange rate of the naira against the dollar.
The Executive Secretary said that a total of 1,682 intending pilgrims had indicated interest for the journey to the holy land, which showed a sharp drop as against the 1,785 pilgrims that eventually performed the exercise last year. [myad]
Former President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo has defended himself over the wide belief that because he helped former President Goodluck Jonathan into power, he (Obasanjo) was part of the alleged failure President Jonathan in office.
Obasanjo remarked: “I have also said that you can help anybody to get a job but you cannot help him to do it. Let us get it clear, there is nobody who has got into any position who has not been helped by one person or more than one person.
“To become Nigeria’s head of state, it was first of all my performance in the war front, now if General Gowon had not sent me to the war front, you won’t know whether I can perform or cannot perform. Now he sent me to the war front, I thank him for it and because I performed we shared the credit, if I had failed, Gowon would not have shared the credit, he would not have shared the condemnation with me, I will be alone.
“Yes as I have said, I believe that opportunity that afforded itself in 2010 for somebody from the minority to become the president of Nigeria, he should never lose the opportunity but what he did with it is entirely to him and don’t forget what he did or did not do with it, will reflect for a long time on that part of the country. And don’t take that lightly, what he did or did not do with it, will reflect for a long time on that part of the country. But again those blaming me, was I the only person that supported him?
“I was not the only 18 million voters who voted for him. You that asked the question who did you vote for, is it not Jonathan? He queried (General laughter in the hall).”
Chief Obasanjo spoke today in a lecture entitled “Effective Education, a Panacea for Societal Development and Transformation,” which he delivered at the 11th convocation ceremony of the Benson Idahosa University (BIU), Benin City.
He wanted Dr. Jonathan to be blamed for his actions and in-actions while in office and not those who helped him into office, adding that the idea of people like him in 2010 was to ensure that a person from the minority zone is given the opportunity to rule the nation which led to the support he gave to Jonathan.
The former President advised President Muhammadu Buhari to use education to sustain the progress made so far in the war against Boko Haram, even as he attributed the scourge in the North East to poverty and lack of education among the youths.
According to him, the refusal of governors in the North East to pay their counterpart funds when his administration established the Universal Basic Education (UBE) contributed to children in these areas not being afforded the opportunity to enjoy free and compulsory education.
Obasanjo expressed confidence that President Buhari will crush the Boko Haram menace, saying that this is one of the major reasons the President would be traveling to the United States to seek the assistance of President Barack Obama to tackle the menace head on.
He attributed the problem to poverty, unemployment and lack of education, even as he stressed the need to provide compulsory education in the North East and re-orientate the people of the area on the need tackle the Boko Haram insurgency whole heartedly.
“Education is a moral enterprise which we need to re-engage, the issue of Boko Haram President Buhari should also tackle it from the angle of morale education, if we are able to tackle boko haram with education in our schools, both in the social media that they use, we will dilute their messages and positively win their hearts and others who have been swayed by the jihadists messages.
“To succeed with counter messages, we need to be more appealing, and truthful and as intense as those of boko haram if not more. The capacity of all teachers would be strengthened to deliver such messages; morning and afternoon assemblies of our primary and secondary schools should have a strong dose of such messages, our airwaves and social media should also be saturated with such positive messages even if we defeat boko haram on the battle front, we need education to sustain the victory.
“Let me give you an insight, in 2010 there was a survey of education in Nigeria and among the six geo political zones; in the south west, it was 79 per cent that are educated, in the south east, it is about 78 per cent in the North East, where boko haram dominates, it is 19 per cent and that is one of the reasons people believe that boko haram was a menace waiting to happen and it doesn’t matter what we do, we have to reverse that trend maybe the situation has even gone worse in the last five years because people have moved out of school some schools have been destroyed and we cannot fold our arms and say it is up to the North East.
“it is up to all of us in Nigeria, we have to do what should be done to bring parity in the area of education across the length and breadth of the country. The boko Haram insurgency is serious problem which we pray will be a thing of the past soon. There are several factors into the insurgency, I am sure that President Buhari will do the needful to exterminate this scourge. “That is one of the reasons President Buhari is traveling to the US next week to secure the support of the American Government to fight terrorism in Nigeria. As we tackle it from the military front and other angles, we should also tackle it through the power of education which is what you have asked me to talk about today.” [myad]
Noble Laureate, Professor Wole Soyika has said that Nigeria has been assailed by one of the most ruthless enemies of humanity that the nation has ever known before, in form of Boko Haram, whose members he swore, are not Muslims or defending Islam.
“I do not have to tell you that never was a nation more in need of reflection and selfless re-dedication than at this moment. Whether we choose to admit it or not, we are assailed by one of the most ruthless enemies of humanity that the nation has ever known.
“Boko Haram claim to derive their inspiration and commitment to the religion of Islam, but you and I know that they are nothing more than bloodthirsty liars and blasphemers. Their actions brand them as obsessive enemies of learning, enlightenment and indeed of humanity. My message to you all is straightforward:
“We must not despair, and we must never submit. We must never forget their victims who must now be counted in thousands. We must dedicate ourselves to the recovery of the missing, the rehabilitation of the displaced, and the healing of the wounded and traumatized.”
Soyinka spoke today in his message to the youths who participated in the Wole Soyinka International Cultural Exchange project, 2015 to mark his 81st birthday in his Ijegba forest home town, Abeokuta, Ogun State.
He felicitated with Muslims and advised them to join hands in expelling Boko Haram from the society, adding: “no matter to what part of the nation we primarily belong, irrespective of whatever religion we espouse, and no matter where we find ourselves in these troubled times, we must link arms and stand against the forces of irredeemable evil, and be guided by pronouncements that promote our common humanity in defiance of a murderous minority.
“What binds us all together is that common faculty – the mind – a faculty that identifies us as a living species apart from the common herd, such as those rams and goats that will be slaughtered for feasting when this season of fasting and sacrifices is over. We must not surrender.
“We must not even accommodate those who believe that our youth exist only for enslavement and arbitrary slaughter. These creatures are not part of us. They belong to no known community of humans. We must join hands in expelling them from our midst and remain dedicated to that eternal human undertaking – the pursuit of truth and illumination through the exercise of the mind.” [myad]
The Kogi State Police Command has directed all licensed holders of guns and other firearms in the state to report to its headquarters latest by July 22, 2015.
This is contained in a statement issued in Lokoja, capital of Kogi, on Friday by the command headquarters.
It said that the holders of the guns and firearms should report with their firearms irrespective of whether the licence was obtained from the state or any other states, and irrespective of their renewal status.
The Police Public Relations Officer,(PPRO), ASP Sola Collins Adebayo, who signed the statement said that the action was informed by the need to revalidate the licences of the existing holders of such firearms.
According to the statement, the exercise has become necessary in view of the proliferation of firearms and the recent surge in cases of armed robbery, kidnapping and other violent crimes associated with the use of firearms in the state.
It said that, any holder of firearms that fails to heed the directive, but later found to be in possession of firearms of any calibre would be made to face the law.
“The case will be treated as being in possession of unlawful firearm and such person will be made to face the full wrath of the law, ” it said.
The police in the statement also urged the public to buy into its efforts to rid the state of all forms of crime by supplying it with useful information that may lead to the arrest of criminals in any part of the state.[myad]
Jubilant crowd struggling to catch a glimpse of President at the Eid Ground today
President Muhammadu Buhari who observed Eid-el-Fitr prayer today at the Abuja central Eid praying ground along Airport road was almost mobbed by ecstatic Muslims who breached security and protocol in a bid to catch a glimpse of him.The incident occurred even as security personnel battle to shield the President as they were almost overwhelmed by the jubilant youths.
President Buhari who managed to wriggle out of the situation later narrated his experience when he hosted some residents of Abuja, who paid him Sallah homage at the Aso Presidential Villa, Abuja.
“Today, during and immediately after the prayers, I think I was bombarded by the youths who almost overwhelmed the security.
“I had to hold tight to my gown to get to my car, and I was advised to enter the car from the ADC’s side and I refused. I went across trying to wave my hand to the wild youths who wanted to see me.
“On an occasion like this, it shows that after what happened to President Ronald Reagan of the USA, it is only God almighty that protects leaders; because in a mob like this, anybody with a sharp knife can get access and do a lot of damage.
“So, all the policemen and soldiers that were deployed since six o’clock in the morning before I came out two hours later in the rains cannot protect you; only God protects. I hope God will continue to protect us.”
The delegation was led by the Permanent Secretary, Federal Capital Territory Administration, Obinna Chukwu, with Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo, in attendance.
Addressing members of the delegation, the President thanked them for their “loyalty to the country, as represented by our institutions and to the system.”
President Buhari congratulated members of the delegation for being privileged among thousands others out there, for meeting him and shaking hands with him at the Presidential Villa without hassles.
President Muhammadu Buhari and Senate President, Bukola Saraki at Eid-ground
“I congratulate you for the privilege you have which is only you residents of the FCT that have the privilege to come and meet me and shake hands with me and take picture with me, other Nigerians are envious of you if you don’t know it.”
The President was presented with a giant Sallah greeting card by the delegation, which also included the John Cardinal Onaiyekan of the Catholic Church; Senator Philip Aduda; Inspector-General of Police, Solomon Arase; National Security Adviser, Babagana Monguno; ?and former Army Chief, Abdurahman Dambazzau.[myad]
The Special Olympics Nigeria has said that 42 athletes and 18 officials would represent the country at the 14th Special Olympics World Summer Games in Los Angeles, United States.
National Director of the body, Naomi Saliu-Lawal, said today at a news briefing in Lagos that the team would depart the country on July 20.
The Games are scheduled to hold between July 25 and August 2 at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.
Saliu-Lawal expressed optimism that after going through series of training, the team would make the country proud at the games.
“Nigerians should expect the best from the team and I’m assuring the country that the athletes will come back home with medals,” she said.
The director also said that the body had signed a contract with Exxon Mobil to empower the special athletes in vocational skills.
She said that the programme would start as soon as the athletes returned from the games.
Meanwhile, the Chairman of the association, Victor Oshinbolu, has commended the coaches and sponsors of the team for their support to the athletes.
Oshinbolu said all hand should be on deck to encourage children with disabilities to take to sports.
“We must put in a collective effort to encourage these athletes in order to give them a sense of belonging in the society,” he said.
He advised the media to help in enlightening the society on the benefits of supporting the physically challenged. [myad]
The Imam of the Eid praying ground in Kuje Quarters, Abuja, Ustaz Ishaq Saidu has warned leaders to beware of the fact that God will hold them responsible for the way they lead the people under them. He said that leadership at any level is a big burden which only those with fear of God should undertake. Delivering a sermon today shortly after leading hundreds of Muslims to observe two Rakah (prayer) in celebration of the Eid-el-Fitri, signalling the end of 29-day Ramadan Fast, Ustaz Ishaq said that it is only the ignorants that would be desperate in search of leadership, adding that if people know the burden God places on leaders, they would run away from it. He said that even the wealthy ones would be asked how did they spend their wealth, saying that the burden that God also places on the wealthy ones would make those who fear Him not to be blessed with amassing but just enough to take care of every day living. He quoted Quran as saying that people should look for wealth but not to amass it to the detriment of others. He lamented over the closure of many industries in Nigeria, a situation that had rendered millions of youths jobless, adding that it is dangerous to allow the youths roaming the streets without jobs. “It is also dangerous to deny farmers the necessary implements to boost food production.” Ustaz Ishaq called on the federal, states and local governments to arrest the drift of Nigeria in many socio-economic fronts, including health, education, agriculture and other sectors. He wanted the governments to judiciously use the economic resources for the benefit of all Nigerians. [myad]
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Saudi authorities have announced that they have broken up an organisation linked to the Islamic State (IS) group that has been terrorizing many parts of the world. The authorities also announced the arrest of 431 of the members of the group, most of whom are Saudis.
Alleged Forgery Of Senate Rules: Matters Miscellany, By Sufuyan Ojeifo
The Unity Forum, which lost the senate leadership contest to Like Minds group, adverted attention to the issue on the floor, and would not allow it to be swept under the carpet despite the ruling by the Senate President, Bukola Saraki, on a point of order by Senator Kabiru Marafa, that the chamber has only one rule book: “That is Senate Standing Orders 2015 (as amended).”
Conventionally, every new session of the Senate, since 1999, had its rule book, not completely different from the previous one, but benefitting, where and when necessary, from some minimal or far-reaching amendments.
Such amendments are usually ratified in plenary by the Senate.
The Senate Standing Orders 2015 (as amended), the document which was circulated to members of the Eighth session during the June 9, 2015 inauguration did not benefit from such ratification.
Agreed that the rule book is the business of every Senate session as argued during an interview session last Tuesday on CHANNELS TV by Solomon Ita-Enang (former Chair of the Rules and Business Committee of the Seventh senate); but the Eighth session, at the point of inauguration, had not had the opportunity to look at the book and fashion out necessary amendments. I remember it was the Fifth session of the Senate that amended the 2007 rule book (that effectively accords ranking or cognate experience pre-eminent consideration in leadership appointments) which became the 2011 rule book, as amended, in the Sixth session. Did the Seventh session, which could have amended the document, do so? If it did not, the purported 2015 rules book could not have superseded the 2011 rule book because the Eighth session, which was yet to be inaugurated, could not have amended the 2015 rules book that was circulated on June 9, 2015.
That was the point Marafa was making and I am at great pains to fault his position.
Marafa had, through Orders 110, 3(e) (i), made his pungent intervention: “Any senator desiring to amend any part of the Rules or alter any clause shall give notice to such amendment and write to the President of the Senate, giving details of the proposed amendment. The President of the Senate shall, within seven working days of the receipt of the notice, cause the amendment to be printed and be circulated to members. Thereafter, it shall be printed in the Order Paper of the Senate.”
To strengthen his position, he had claimed ignorance of any such notice, receipt of notice, printing and circulation of the notice to members and its subsequent printing in the Order Paper. Read him: “I have Senate Standing Orders 2011 (as amended), which I was given when I was sworn-in as a senator on the 6th of June, 2011. When I was sworn in two weeks ago (June 9, 2015), I was handed another Senate Standing Orders 2015 (as amended). I did say that day that I cannot recall… and I used the opportunity provided by the break we went-the two weeks break-to go through the Hansards of the Seventh Assembly and I could not find anywhere these rules were amended or changed. This book (Senate Standing Orders 2011) clearly spells out how it can be amended. And that is the order I have just read….” Point well made!
No explanation to counter his position has been sanguineous enough to achieve that effect. The laborious attempt made by the Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, did not fly in the face of simple logic. His explanation, perhaps, at best, amounted to what could safely be described as illogicality of logic. Read him: “I would like to offer explanation to my friend, Senator Marafa.
He’s just four years old in the Senate. Some of us have been here for 12 years. From 1999 till date, this Senate has come with its own rules. There was Senate rules book of 1999, 2003, 2007, 2011 and now 2015. The reason is quite simple. If you look at Section 64 of the 1999 Constitution, it says that the Senate and House of Representatives shall each stand dissolved at the expiration of a period of four years, commencing from the date of the first sitting of the house.
“So, the implication is that the rule he was referring to ended with the Senate on the 6th of June. That is why we had Senate Rule Book of 1999, 2003, 2007, 2011 and now 2015. If he is seeking to amend any Senate rule, he can only amend the existing one, which is the one for 2015. So, between now and 2019, this particular rule will govern us and can be amended in the manner he has suggested. Between now and until after 2019, we are going to have another Senate Rule of 2019. That has been the process and procedure since 1999. And it is based on the provisions of the Constitution….”
Who amended the 2011 Senate Standing Orders to produce the Senate Standing Orders 2015 (as amended)? When and how was it done? Did it follow laid-down procedure as circumscribed in the extant rule? Can you now see what I meant about the feebleness of the attempt to counter Marafa’s position? These are the issues the Senate should address. I believe the Senate knows the truth. I can understand that there is a whiff of desperation in the ambience of the Upper Chamber in the lingering battle for leadership position, which Saraki is currently annexing.
What the Unity Forum, which promoted the candidature of Ahmad Lawan, is aiming at through Marafa’s gambit is to vitiate the moral basis of the current leadership of the Senate. This explains the petition the group sent to the Police alleging forgery of the rule book and requesting investigations into it. What should have been an internal affair of the Senate has now been externalised due to the grudge fight for position.
The vitiation of the moral basis of the Senate leadership under Saraki would be possible as long as it can be proved that the process of inauguration was grounded on the rules contained in the controversial Senate Standing Orders 2015 (as amended). Even if the argument is valid and a basis for interrogation of the malfeasance of changing the standing rule book arbitrarily is established, how should the Police have responded and proceeded in their investigations?
Expectedly, the Police had already had friendly chats with the Clerk to the National Assembly (CNA), Alhaji Salisu Abubakar Maikasuwa, over the matter. The Police probably felt that being the head of the National Assembly bureaucracy, and especially being the one who performed the inauguration, he should be able to speak about the alleged forgery of the Senate Standing Orders 2015. I do not share the view that the Police erred by speaking with Maikasuwa. That was the best thing to do in order not to progress in error.
That meeting, even though one is not privy to the discussions, might have provided an opportunity for him to enlighten the Police officers about the workings of the Legislature and who are the custodians of the rules of the Senate and the House of Representatives are. And once that is established, it should have, by now, been clear to the Police where to fish for the truth in the murky waters of leadership tussle in the Senate.
Sifting the submission of Adetutu Folasade-Koyi in her piece titled “Who changed the rules?” under Senatewatch Column of Tuesday, July 14, 2015, I concur that Maikasuwa is not a lawmaker; that he is a civil servant who has no business with parliamentary rules and procedures; and that he is not even the custodian of the rules of both chambers of the National Assembly. I hope the Police are now well informed as to where to go in furtherance of their investigation in quest for the truth.
I also concur with one Ariyo Dare’s views published in a number of national newspapers on Sunday, July 12, 2015 about the overall role that Maikasuwa played to ensure that the National Assembly inauguration on June 9, 2015 was not stalled. Dare’s views came against the backdrop of the subtle attack on Maikasuwa by Abbah Mahmood in his back page Thursday Column in Leadership of July 9, 2015 wherein, to use Dare’s words “he (Mahmood) magisterially declared in his treatise” that Maikasuwa yaci kasuwarsa kawai (Maikasuwa just ate his market).
But after explaining Maikasuwa’s impartial and constitutionally-guided role during the inauguration, Dare had countered Mahmod thus “Maikasuwa ya gyara kasuwan democratiyan Nigeria (Maikasuwa has succeeded in helping to strengthen democracy in Nigeria).” I find it difficult to disagree with Dare.
Ojeifo, Editor-in-Chief of The Congresswatch magazine, sent this piece from Abuja via ojwonderngr@yahoo.com [myad]