Some lawmakers elected on the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) platform in the National Assembly are reportedly opposed to moves by the Senate and House of Representatives leadership to give opposition lawmakers 50% of the chairmanship slots on various committees in the two chambers.
According to media sources, the APC will share committee chairmanship equally with the major opposition platforms, particularly the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Labour Party (LP), New Nigerian Peoples Party (NNPP), and Young Peoples Party (YPP).
Senate President Godswill Akpabio and Speaker of the House of Representatives Tajudeen Abbas allegedly agreed to hand over 50% of their seats to opposition legislators ahead of the June 13 elections.
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It was learned that the sharing formula would apply to the various committee categories, denoted as Grades A, B, and C.
According to sources, the move was intended to serve as a measure of reward for opposition lawmakers’ support and to provide stability valves for the new leadership, while also easing tensions in the National Assembly, particularly in the Senate, where Akpabio faced strong and fierce opposition to emerge.
However, according to leadership, Senators and members of the House elected on the APC platform were unhappy with the sharing formulae that put their fate on par with their colleagues elected on opposition platforms.
An APC Senator, who did not want his name mentioned, told the platform: “The leadership of the Senate and House of Representatives have conceded 50 per cent of the chairmanship seats in both chambers to our colleagues elected on the platforms of the various opposition platforms.
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“The leaders of both chambers, Senator Godswill Akpabio and Speaker Tajudeen Abbas, had this arrangement with the opposition lawmakers before their elections.
“We thought it was just a gimmick to lure the opposition lawmakers to vote for them before the election but surprisingly Senator Akpabio and Rt. Hon. Abbas has at different meetings with the opposition caucus after their elections, renewed their commitment to honour the agreement.”
He continued: “This arrangement cuts across all categories of committees. It means APC will share grades A, B and C committees with them at equal proportion. It is an unfair arrangement to those of us from the ruling party.
“How can APC lawmakers share these slots at par with their colleagues in the opposition parties? It’s never done and this is unprocedural. They are not even reserving a substantial number of the grade A (juicy committees) committee for those of us from in the ruling party.
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“Even if we agree with them that such moves can help to ensure peace and stability in the Senate and House, the sharing shouldn’t have been at equal proportions. What do we enjoy as a ruling party? If the reverse was the case and the APC lost in the February 25 presidential election, are they saying either PDP or LP, which are strong contenders in the race, would have shared the chairmanship slots in the National Assembly with the elected APC members equally?
“The answer is no. Our leaders are just bothered about their interests – how to preserve their exalted seats. They are not bothered about the interest and survival of APC. What happens when you load the opposition parties with juicy and grade A committees? It means we are strengthening the opposition parties to clip the wings of and cripple the APC in various constituencies.
“They are ultimately plotting the weakness of APC. Quite honestly, members of the majority caucus in both chambers are grumbling and disenchanted about this arrangement. The leaders are surely and assuredly setting a stage for crisis in the National Assembly because we are going to resist any attempt to weaken APC as a ruling party.”
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Another politician who attended a meeting with the Minority Leader of the House, Kingsley Chinda, reported that the representative of the Obio/Akpor federal constituency in the House presented a thorough account of his recent meeting with Abbas at the forum.
Aside from the information provided on the sharing formulae of 50% of committee chairmanship in favor of the caucus, Chinda stated that all members of the House, with the exception of those to be appointed into the appropriation committee, would be appointed as chairman and vice chairman of the various committees in the House.
Chinda, according to one of our sources, also hinted that all “parliamentary friendly bodies” in the House would be upgraded to committee status to pave the way for the creation of additional chairmanship slots.
The source said, “The minority caucus met at Room 304 in the National Assembly complex shortly after the plenary on Wednesday, during which our minority leader, Rt. Hon. Kingsley Chinda, briefed us about the recent developments in the House, especially his recent meetings with the Honourable Speaker, Rt. Hon. Tajudeen Abbas, as it affects our wellbeing and the fate of the members of the minority caucus in the scheme of things.
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“First, Hon. Chinda implored us to put our house in order. He said the minority caucus should work in harmony with the government for things that are good and in the public interest. He stated that the leadership of the House had no choice than to carry every member along since there was no contest in the election of June 13th. Consequently, since everyone voted for him, Mr Speaker has offered to carry everyone along.”
Another of our sources who spoke on condition of anonymity said, “Hon Chinda further disclosed to us at the meeting that Mr Speaker told him that the chairmanship slots of the various committees would be shared in equal ratio between those of us elected on the platform of the opposition parties and the ruling APC.
“That it will be 50 per cent for the majority of APC and 50 per cent for the minority. That was his promise to us before we supported his election and we are glad that he has renewed that commitment and expressed his readiness to keep that promise.
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“The minority leader also said that every 360 members, excluding those to be appointed into the appropriation committee, will either emerge as chairman or vice chairman in the emerging dispensation in the House. Clearly, he said anyone who finds himself in the appropriation committee will not serve as chairman or vice chairman in any other committee.
“He said the elimination of members of the appropriation committee, which is a major grade A committee, is meant to create opportunities for more members to emerge as either chairman or vice chairman of the various committees.
“To further brighten the chances of more members to clinch either chairman or vice chairman of a committee, all parliamentary friendly bodies, including inter-parliamentary, are to be upgraded to committee levels, primarily to satisfy everybody”.
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