Senate President Abubakar Bukola
Saraki on Wednesday averted what
could have been the outright
rejection of the nominees of
President Muhammadu Buhari who
are to be screened by the upper
chambre.
The nominees included Mr. Williams
Babatunde Fowler, Acting Executive
Chairman, Federal Inland Revenue
Service (FIRS); Eng. Umaru Garba
Dambatta, Vice Chairman of the
National Communication Commission
(NCC); Ahmed Lawan Kuru, Managing
Director of Asset Management
Corporation (AMCON) as well as
Mr.Kola Ayeye, Eberechukwu
Fortunate Uneze and Alh. Aminu
Ismail, Executive Directors, AMCON.
The Senate President had read the
communication from Buhari on the
nominees during plenary on Tuesday
and according to the rule of the
Senate, he should, during the
Wednesday sitting, raise the matter
for the chambre to decide what day
and how the screening will be
conducted.
However, before the commencement
of sitting that Wednesday, Saraki did
a random sampling of opinion of his
colleagues and, sensing that many of
them were angry about the breach
committed by the nominees who had
assumed office and were already
acting in their various capacities
contrary to the position of the law,
the Senate President ensured that
the matter was not listed on the
Order Paper for the day. He also
refused to mention the issue on the
floor.
Senator Barnabas Gemade, who did
not know the reason Saraki refused
to mention the issue, raised a point of
order during the plenary sitting under
Order 40, Rule 1, which states: “The
President of the Senate shall
immediately after prayers ….read to
the Senate any message addressed
to the Senate by the President of the
Federal Republic of Nigeria”.
The Senate President had to counter
Gemade by citing Order 40, Rule 2
which states: “A message from the
President, if presented to the Senate
by the Leader of the Senate may be
brought up at any time before the
commencement or at the close of
public business, and shall be
considered forthwith or ordered to be
considered upon a future day”, The
phrase relied on Saraki to save the
day is ‘considered upon a future day’.
The belief is that if Saraki had tabled
the matter for discussion and put the
question to vote on when and how
the senators should commence the
screening of the presidential
nominees, an overwhelming majority
might oppose the screening and that
summarily interprets to rejection and
disqualification of the nominees.
“That was what happened when
President Jonathan nominated Mrs.
Mfon Akpan from Akwa Ibom, as
Chairman of FIRS. Her nomination
was summarily rejected during voting
on whether to screen her or not. That is why a Director in the service, Mr. Odugbesan, was the one acting in the office until recently . If the Senate President had raised the issue, last Wednesday, the nominees could have been rejected. That is why the Senate President and the Presidency must be in good terms so that they can watch each other’s back”, a senator said
yesterday. The senator added that Saraki also demonstrated good faith in dealing with the Presidency later that Wednesday when he chose to stay in the office till 5.00pm to receive the ministerial list from the Presidency despite the fact that the Senate had concluded sitting around 1pm. “If he had left the office after waiting for the list till 3.00pm, it means the Presidency would not have met the September deadline it set for the release of the list of ministerial nominees as announced by President Buhari to the nation and the international community. However, Senator Saraki waited until they brought the list and even announced to the nation that he got the list that day. That is to tell you that the National Assembly will always co-operate with the President at all times to ensure that state policies, programmes and appointments get the necessary legislative backing”, he said.
Source: www.vanguardngr.com

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So saraki should be saved from CCT too? I rub your back, you rub mine. I don't think buhari will work that way with him.

@airmark of course that's what Saracki wants.