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Tag: Ahmad Lawan

  • Lawan urges Nigerians not to compromise unity

    WITH a promise that the Ninth Senate will work for the nation’s progress, Senate President Ahmad Lawan on Thursday cautioned Nigerians against compromising unity.

    He described the constitution of relevant parliamentary committees as a demonstration of National Assembly’s preparedness to work for the nation’s progress.

    The Senate President stressed the importance of unity to national development and cohesion.

    Lawan spoke yesterday at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, on his return from pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia.

    He was received by Senators Barau Jibrin, Michael Opeyemi Bamidele and his Deputy Chief of Staff Mohammed Karage.

    Lawan said: “Nigerians should thank God that we are still together. As such, we should work to ensure that the unity of this country is not compromised.”

    The Senate President urged Nigerians to continue to pray for their leaders, adding that leaders are supposed to serve the people.

    According to him, no leader will like to deliberately fail to perform.

    Read Also: Lawan off to Saudi Arabia for hajj

    “Also, in times of challenges, like we are going through presently, Nigerians should continue to be behind their leaders with prayers and support backed by understanding. By the Grace of God, Nigeria will reach those great heights we have long prayed for,” Lawan said.

    The Senate President reiterated his appeal to the Executive arm of government on the need to be on the same page with the National Assembly to reverse what he called the undesirable trend of the current budget cycle in Nigeria.

    He said: “We need to work for a budget that will be passed by the National Assembly by December. That requires that we work assiduously with the Executive arm of government.

    “We want to have the budget laid before the National Assembly by the end of September and for the National Assembly to lock up the whole of October this year for budget defence so that it can be processed and passed before we go on Christmas break. It is doable; it is achievable and attainable.

    “I’m sure if we are able to achieve that, Nigeria’s economy will witness a boost. Businesses in Nigeria will have something predictable to work with. I believe that together with the Executive arm of government, we should be able to do this as it is fundamental to us in the National Assembly. I’m sure the Executive arm is also looking forward to that.”

    A statement by his media adviser, Ola Awoniyi, also quoted Lawan as saying the Ninth National Assembly has been properly constituted, especially with the various committees in place.

     

  • We’ll we be guided by national interest, says Lawan

    Senate President, Ahmad Lawan on Monday said senators will be guided by national rather than personal interest in discharging their responsibilities.

    Lawan stated this when he played host to chairmen of state chapters of the All Progressive Congress (APC) in Abuja.

    He noted that the Senate will subsume any individual interest for “our collective interest.”

    A statement by his Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Mohammed Isa, quoted Lawan as saying that the Senate would focus on issues that would enhance better security environment, better power supply and an economy that will provide job opportunities for youths.

    “These are things that will continue to unite us. It is when we are able to tackle those issues in the collective interest of Nigeria particularly, that we are able to enjoy the privileges that we have,” the Senate President said.

    The APC senators, he said, are committed to the success of President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration, adding, “we will ensure we work seamlessly with President Muhammed Buhari and the party.

    “We have been elected to represent the Nigerian people. Mr. President was overwhelmingly elected. We will have no difficulty in working with Mr. President.

    He called for a dispute resolution mechanism in the APC to amicably resolve any issue that might arise within the party.

    “From my experience in 2019 elections or the process leading to the elections, we need to have a better dispute resolution mechanism,” Lawan said.

    Read Also: Lawan to South Africa: Nigeria’ll no longer condone attacks

    Lawan noted that the APC needed to have such dispute resolution mechanism because the party could not afford to have any of its chapter in disarray.

    He said that APC should be disposed to ensuring that all chapters of the party are able to contribute to national development.

    “So I will advocate for a dispute resolution mechanism that will ensure that our party is able to deal with issues as they emerge.

    “Of course, naturally, we may have disagreement from time to time but what is important and crucial will be how we are able to tackle the disagreement and come back to agree and move forward,” Lawan said.

    He expressed gratitude to the PDP Senators for their overwhelming support, and reiterated his commitment to lead a bipartisan legislature.

    According to Lawan, “we are happy we have the support of our colleagues from the opposition parties. They have demonstrated their commitment to work with us.

    “We too have also resolved to work with them in the interest of our country and for Mr. President and our party to succeed in taking us to the next level”.

    He thanked the states chairmen of the APC for their role in the victory of the party in 2019 general election.

    Chairman of the Forum, who is also the Borno State APC chairman, Alhaji Ali Bukar Dalori, advised the APC senators to ensure smooth working relationship with the executive.

  • Senate calls for timely remittance of funds by revenue agencies

    THE Senate on Wednesday urged revenue collecting agencies to ensure timely transfer of funds collected into the Federation Account.

    Senate President Dr Ahmad Lawan made the call in Abuja at a meeting with some of the revenue collecting agencies.

    Lawan also called for timely disbursement of funds to federal, states and local government councils after monthly allocation meetings.

    The agencies present at the meeting include Federal Inland Revenue Services (FIRS), Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) and Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) among others.

    He said timely collections and disbursement of funds would determine the attainment of the next levels of agenda of the federal government.

    He said the Senate is committed to passing the 2020 budget before the end of 2019, adding that timely disbursement funds would also facilitate the implementation of the budget.

    He said the Senate would look into factors militating against the timely transfer of funds into the federation account.

    He said the late transfer of funds affect the speedy implementation of the budget and ultimately stall the development of economic activities.

    Read Also: Senate tasks FG on domestic airlines

    Lawan said the Senate is determined to serve Nigerians, adding the National Assembly is ready to help resolve challenges affecting the agencies.

    “We have been voted to make Nigerians feel the impact of government, the economy must work, and it will work when collections and disbursement of funds are made.

    “But we are going to insist that the right things are done, the right thing is that you transfer the money in good time.

    “Call FACC meeting at the right time, Federal Ministry of Finance should disburse the resources to the MDAs at the right time,” Lawan said.

    The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC)  urged the Senate to ensure adequate funding of the oil and gas sector to guarantee sustainable revenue flow from the sector.

    Group Managing Director of the NNPC Mallam Mele Kyari stated that NNPC has introduced various projects aimed at integrating the oil and gas industry with the economy and called for more funding to achieve a sustainable growth in the industry.

    He also solicited the support of the Senate to curb cross-border smuggling of petroleum products, especially petrol, which he said was posing a challenge to the efforts of the corporation to ensure seamless supply and distribution of products in the counry.

    He commended the Senate for its support which he said, enabled the corporation to offset its cash-call arrears.

  • Adeyeye is Senate Media Committee chairman

    Senate President Ahmad Lawan yesterday named the senator representing Ekiti South, Adedayo Adeyeye, the Chairman of Senate Ad Hoc Committee on Media and Public Affairs.

    Lawan said the committee would function and interface until a standing committee is constituted.

    Other members of the committee are: Senators Aishatu Dahiru, Uba Sani, Abba Moro, Ifeanyi Ubah and Betty Okagua-Apiafi.

    Read Also: Just in: Adeyeye is Senate spokesman

    Before he defected to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Adeyeye was the spokesperson of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

    With the constitution of the Selection Committee, it is expected that chairmen and members of the standing committees of the Upper Chamber would soon announced.

     

  • UPDATED: Senate wades into alleged assault of lady by Senator Abbo

    The Senate on Wednesday constituted a seven-man ad-hoc committee to investigate alleged assault of a woman at a toy shop in Abuja by Senator Elisha Abbo.

    The Adamawa North Senator, said to be the youngest in the chamber, was observed in a 10-minutes video footage recklessly slapping a lady shop keeper.

     The offence of the lady appeared to be that she cautioned the Senator not to attack the shop owner who Abbo claimed insulted him.

    Senator Abbo claimed that the shop owner tagged him a drunk.

    Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, who set up the committee, named Ebonyi North Senator, Samuel Egwu, as chairman.

    Other members of the committee included Senators Oluremi Tinubu, Stella Oduah, Dauda Jika, Danladi Sankara and Mohammed Sani.

    The constitution of the probe committee followed a Point of Order by Senator Uba Sani.

    Kaduna Central Sani told his colleagues that the image of the Senate had been dented by a video that went viral about a Senator slapping a lady repeatedly.

    The Senate, he cautioned, must take decisive measures to redeem his battered image.

    Sani claimed to have received over 110 calls from within the country and from friends across the shores of Nigeria.

    He insisted that the Senate should take urgent steps to address the assault allegation.

    Sani said, “As soon as the story was published online, I started receiving calls from Nigeria and abroad. A decisive action should be taken to show to the world that we respect the right of other Nigerians no matter how lowly placed they may be.

    “The Senate needs to do something. Our image is at stake. If we do this, we will be able to redeem the image of the Senate. Mr. President, we must act right away without delay.”

    The Senate President however interjected and cautioned against drawing conclusions before investigation of the allegation.

    “Let us not conclude yet. Whatever we saw still remains an allegation. It has not been proven. We need to give everyone involved, including our colleague, a fair hearing. We should be guided. Both sides must have fair hearing.”

    Senator Opeyemi Bamidele (Ekiti South) in his contribution also cautioned against hasty conclusions.

    He noted that no matter the allegation, Senator Abbo and the other side involved should be given the opportunity to state their case.

    Read Also: Senate gets Principal officers

    Bamidele said: “It was an extremely tragic news. But we can not be sensational about this. Nigerians must see us as people who are ready to lead by example. We need to give our colleague the benefits of the doubt.

    “What happened is a violation of Sections 33, 34 and 35. We need to set up an ad-hoc committee to give everyone a sense of fair hearing. But we must always work to protect the rights of Nigerians.”

    Minority Leader, Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe, also condemned the alleged assault.

    Abaribe however cautioned against apportioning blame before investigation.

    He noted that the Senate rule book stated the mode of behavior of Senators that should be exhibited in the Senate and outside the Senate.

    Abaribe said: “In our rule book, Section 56 spells out how we should behave. We are 109 privileged Nigerians. It comes with responsibilities too. You have already said we cannot apportion guilt on who is right or wrong.

    “I want us to suspend judgment until we can investigate this matter further. That will be in the interest of justice to us and to Nigerians who look up to us.”

    Senate leader, Senator Yahaya Abdullahi,on his own  said that full details of what happened should be known to enable the Senate to take definite decision.

    He said, “The issues have become very clear. We can not go to judgement without knowing the full details. There must be fair hearing. We can not take action without investigation. An ad-hoc committee should be set up.”

    Lawan in his conclusion said: “This morning (yesterday), I received a lot of calls locally and internationally. We are going to be very responsible, we can not condone any act of violence. If there is any act of violence against us, we can not keep mute.

    “We are privileged and we can’t let the people down. We will set up an ad-hoc committee. It will be an opportunity for the senator to state his side. The lady allegedly assaulted will also have the chance of stating her side.”

  • Senators intensify lobby for juicy committees

    With the apparent resolution of the contentious positions of Senate principal officers, the battle appears to have shifted to lobbying for juicy committees.
    It was also learnt on Sunday the list of members of Senate Selection Committee, Senate Committee on Media and Public Affairs and the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions, are ready.

    The three committees, including Senate Committee on Public Accounts, which is normally chaired by the opposition, are statutory committees.

    The implication of the list of members of the committees being ready is that Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, is likely to announce names of the members of the panel on Tuesday at the resumption of plenary.
    The composition of committees by the Selection Committee headed by Senate President, observers say, is a major banana peel, Lawan should properly navigate.

    Read Also: Cracks in PDP over probe of Senators, Reps

    Findings showed that as lobby for committees exacerbate in the Upper Chamber, “no senator wants to be left out.”

    The class ‘A’ committees including Senates Services, Appropriation, Finance, Petroleum (down and upstream), Customs, NDDC, Maritime, Police Affairs, Communications, Power and Steel Development and few others, are said to be hotly chased by senators.

    The lawmakers are said to be leveraging on their link and relationship with some “highly placed persons” in the Senate to make case for themselves.

    It is gathered that the struggle for committee positions would get fiercer in the upper chamber after the possible release of names of principal officers on Tuesday.

    All Progressives Congress (APC) Senators are said to be banking on their majority status in the Senate to chair most of the committees.

    Some APC Senators who played prominent roles in the emergence of Lawan as Senate President, are expected to be “compensated” with chairmanship or membership of class ‘A’ committees.

    Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Senators on the other hand, are said to have been “rallying to the Abuja home of the anointed minority leader, Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe, to stand in for them.

    A North Central Senator, who spoke to our reporter on condition of anonymity, did not see anything wrong in lobbying for committees.

    He said: “Lobbying is the game of politicians. There is nothing wrong with lobbying because that is the way you get things done in parliament.

    “It is only that in this clime, people read a lot of negative meanings into lobbying. You lobby to serve in a committee you feel your legislative functions can be better served not necessarily for monetary gains.”

    He also dismissed the idea of juicy committees insisting that “all committees are equal.”

    Baring last- minute changes, a former Nasarawa State Governor, Abdullahi Admau will be announced Senate Leader tomorrow while the Ondo North Senator Ajayi Borrifice, will be declared Deputy Senate leader.

    A former Abia State Governor, Orji Uzor Kalu, (Abia north) may also be pronounced Senate Chief Whip while Yahaya Abdullahi (North west) may emerge Senate Deputy Chief Whip.

  • Lawan: no jumbo pay for Senators, Reps

    Senate President Ahmad Lawan has said contrary to insinuation, no member of the National Assembly receives jumbo pay.

    The Senate President also asked the Presidency to submit the country’s annual appropriation bill in September or first week of October to enable the National Assembly pass the budget within three months.

    Lawan, who spoke when he hosted executive members of the Senators’ Forum in his office, noted that talks about senators and members of the House of Representatives receiving jumbo pay is not true.

    The senator said his  monthly take home pay is N750,000. He added that funds are also provided to run his office.

    He said: “We owe Nigerians everything. The National Assembly is going to be open to the public. Let Nigerians know what we are doing, but one thing I want to emphasise here is that I don’t believe in anything called jumbo pay to the National Assembly.

    Read Also: Lawan’s SA on New Media resigns

    “Members, both in the Senate and House of Representatives, receive what is their salary. I receive N750,000 as my salary, but I need to function as a senator. My office needs to be properly funded. Therefore I cannot conduct my oversight without some funding.

    “So I believe that Nigerians need to understand this. We need to continue to explain to Nigerians, and I will also urge you to explain to Nigerians because they need to be kept abreast with happenings in the National Assembly.

    “They deserve to know how their resources are being utilized, and this is what we will continue to do. I believe that the National Assembly needs proper funding because the legislature is so critical to any development. When an institution wants to legislate on almost everything under the sun, they should have the best and Nigerians should have the best outcome…”

  • Why Senate Majority Leader, others are yet to emerge

    The need for wide consultation and agreement among party members is ongoing to select the principal officers of the National Assembly, it was learnt on Sunday.

     A top All Progressives Congress (APC) Senator who spoke on why the Senate Leader, Deputy Senate Leader, Chief Whip and Deputy Chief Whip of the Senate have not been named, said that “there is no need to worry.”

    The Senator who is also a strong ally of the Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, assured that “by the time we return on July 2nd, our party must have taken a position on who becomes what in the two chambers.”

    He noted that with the election of presiding officers of the two chambers, “it is taken for granted that principal officers of the two chambers will be selected to work with the presiding officers.”

    He added that the presiding officers and the principal officers will constitute the Selection Committee that will pilot the affairs of the chambers.

    According to the North West Senator, “everything will take shape by the time we return because the need to consult and consult widely to reduce acrimony and bad blood is ongoing.”

    He noted that whoever will emerge as Senate leader, which he described as “the soul of the Senate” will be “a product of consensus as directed by the National Working Committee of our party (APC).”

    Read Also: The 9th Senate

    The APC leadership, he said, “is on top of the situation” and “doing what it needs to do to reduce division among possible principal officers of the two chambers.”

    Insisting that “there is nothing to worry about,” he noted that the party will not disappoint.

    Asked whether some people have been penciled down for the positions, he said that “the front liners for the Senate Leader slot are known.”

    He listed Senator Abdullahi Adamu and Senator Alliyu Sabi Abdullahi as possible choices by the party.

    He said, “It is a party affair and any body the party puts forward will emerge. The party is working to prevent rancor and acrimony. Only one person can be Senate leader.

    “The party will also ensure spread in order to carry all party members along.”

    The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on its part is also battling to fill its own principal officers’ slot in the House of Representatives.

    The opposition party has concluded its selection in the Senate with Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe (Abia South) tipped as minority leader, Senator Emmanuel Bwuacha(Taraba South) deputy minority leader, Senator Philip Aduda (FCT) minority whip and Clifford Ordia (Edo Central) deputy minority whip.

    The position in the House is not cleared yet.

    Although it is being rumoured that PDP has settled for Hon. Kingsley Chinda, Hon. Nicholas Ossai appears not to have given up the struggle to upstage the Rivers State House member.

  • How Lawan misfired over appointments

    An innate attribute of Nigerian politicians is their ability to surprise and amaze. And the Senate President, Senator Ahmad Lawan, has just proved that he is not in short supply of this attribute with the announcement of six aides whose appointments have left political observers in utter shock.

    Numbered among them, according to a June 19, 2019 memo from the Chief of Staff to the President of the Senate, Babagana Muhammad Aji, to the Clerk of the National Assembly, are Dr (Mrs) Betty Okoroh (Special Assistant on Administration to the President of the Senate), Mohammed Isa (Special Assistant on Media and Publicity), Olu Onemola (Special Assistant on New Media), Tope Brown Olowoyeye (Senior Legislative Aide on Media and Publicity (Photographer) and Ogechukwu E. Nwankwoh (Senior Legislative Aide on Schedules).

    One thing the appointees all have in common is that they were all aides to the immediate past Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki, who is reputed for doing everything he could to frustrate the plan by President Muhammadu Buhari and the All Progressives Congress (APC) to help Lawan become the President of the 8th Senate. The foregoing is compounded by the appointment, during the week, of Dr Festus Adedayo, an avid critic of APC, Buhari and all they stand for, as Special Adviser to the Senate President on Media and Publicity.

    All the six appointees were said to have been recommended to Lawan by Baba Ahmed, a top aide of Saraki. Lawan was said to have asked Ahmed to help him recruit aides and the latter wasted no time in recommending Saraki boys. He (Ahmed) in turn asked a former media adviser to Saraki, Yusuf Olaniyonu, to recommend a media adviser for the Senate President and Olaniyonu recommended Adedayo, a known Saraki’s loyalist in the media, and Lawan promptly approved his appointment.

    As would be expected, the appointments have turned Lawan’s admirers and supporters against him. Although he yielded slightly to pressure by dropping Adedayo’s name from the list of appointees, he insisted on keeping the remaining five.

    The questions being asked are: Is he so naïve as to surround himself with loyalists of his bitter foe and chieftain of the opposition party? Can he side-step the infamous banana peel in the Senate by starting out in this way? How introspective is he? Does he really have what it takes to lead the Senate? Did he enter into a deal with Saraki without the knowledge of those who backed him to become the Senate President? Questions, questions and more questions.

  • Lawan: battle for Senate President not do-or-die

    Ahead of the inauguration of the Ninth Senate and the election of a new Senate President, the Senate Leader, Dr. Ahmad Lawan, yesterday said the battle for the exalted position is not a do-or-die affair.

    He, however, unfolded plans to devote three months to budget consideration if he is elected to the lead the National Assembly in the next political dispensation.

    The Senate Leader said he would ensure the return of the  the nation to the January-December budget cycle.

    According to him, an effective budget cycle would be put in place in a manner that the President would sign the Appropriation Bill of the year ahead on or before December 31.

    Lawan unfolded his plans when he met with representatives of media organisations in Abuja against the backdrop of fierce contest for position of the Senate president.

    He said: “The simple answer is, it is not. We contested for this thing in 2015 and it was the will of God that I will not be Senate President and you will bear me witness that that did not stop me from going to the National Assembly to participate in activities of the Senate.

    “I continued to represent my people as a Committee Chairman on Defence and I conducted myself as such and eventually I was elected the Senate leader and I continued to serve as Senate leader to date.

    “Most of us believe that God Almighty that created us also has designed our lives from cradle to grave and I believe in that.

    “So, it is not a do or die affair and I believe that should we not make it, that will not stop us from working to represent our people, do our oversight, to legislate for the good governance of this country, to support the Senate and the National Assembly and to support Mr. President to deliver the campaign promises of the APC as a political party.  We are going to do that regardless. So, it is not a do-or-die affair.”

    On the nation’s budgeting crisis, Lawan pledged to resolve it with a three-month consideration plan.

    He said that out of the three months, a month will be devoted to budget defence by Ministries Departments and Agencies (MDAs).

    Lawan said: “Even though the budgeting issue varies from time to time, sometimes the crisis may be for three months, four months and sometimes seven months. We believe that we can turn this around with the right attitude and it takes the two sides of government; in this case, the National Assembly and the Executive arm of government.

    “Our approach in the National Assembly will be that we will talk amongst ourselves; we will tell ourselves that we want to pass the budget within three months. If we agree on that, then we will also have to agree on how we will achieve that.

    ”First, we should not leave the Shores of Nigeria for anything unless it is health problem. We must stay around; ensure we have a time frame for budget defence. When I say time frame, I mean we will devote a whole month it, not plenary unless it becomes absolutely necessary.

    “We will approach the executive arm of government and discuss things with them.

    “For Mr. President, there will be nothing more that will gladden his heart than having a budget passed within three months and I am sure it is the same for Nigerians.

    “It will be a huge relief if we can achieve it. So, we will tell the Executive arm of government that no Minister, no chief executive officer of any MDA should leave this country unless it is absolutely necessary and inevitable without defending his or her budget or the budget of the ministry.

    “That one month window should be the only window for budget defence. If any minister or any chief executive officer fails without cogent reasons to defend the budget of the ministry, then that window will be shut and the National Assembly should treat that proposal as it deems fits with all the necessary safeguards to ensure that there is no abuse.

    “After the budget defence, we should have two solid months to have all the analysis we need, all the sub-committees would meet for their defence with the sub-committees in the House and the Senate and it is our hope and desire that before the Christmas break of the National Assembly,  the budget should be sent to Mr. President  for assent.

    “We believe that this is doable and achievable. All we require is the will. I am sure every one of us in the 9th Senate and House of Representatives will have this kind of feeling that what we need to give to Nigerians is to set this budget issue right.

    “In fact, we should attempt to make the budget cycle  1st January- 31st December because this is important for our businesses in this country and outside Nigeria. We should have 12 calendar month of budget presentation because that will translate into massive infrastructure development, provision of services across the country for citizens. So, this is the way we intend to go”.

    Responding to a question, Lawan said: “Our mission is to have a Senate and the National Assembly that work for Nigerians.

    REad also: How far can Ndume go in race for Senate President?

    “What do Nigerians want today? They want to have an improvement in the security of their lives; an economy that works for everyone and they want corruption brought down to its knees. Nigerians want to live in peace with one another.”

    Concerning transparency and the independence of the legislature, Lawan added:  “I believe that we have to work together with the Executive with mutual respect and address the challenges that confront Nigerians today.

    “Where we differ, we are going to resolve such issues in a very credible and respectful manner. We are not going to go into the market square to throw stones recklessly and we believe that there is interdependence between both arms and such would be respected.

    “We believe the openness which has been introduced by National Assembly should be continued and that would make us to function as representatives properly.

    Earlier, the Chairman of the Lawan for Senate Campaign  Group, Sen. Yahaya Abdullahi, said the Senate Leader was “not imposed by the Presidency and the All Progressives Congress (APC).

    “We started the initiative on our own and the party realised the value and decided to support us. So, the choice of Lawan was ours, he was not imposed on us by the presidency or the party.

    “I think they checked his records and knew that he can deliver. Therefore, there was concurrence of interests on Lawan.

    “Lawan is knowledgeable, accomplished and very clean by all standards, not just Nigerian standard. He has the capacity to change the legislature to a position that will serve the interest of Nigerians.”

    The spokesperson for the campaign organisation, Sen. Aliyu Sabi Abdullahi said: “Nigerians should back Lawan because he has a rich legislative experience and will not disappoint.”

    Other Senators-elect on the entourage of Lawan were” Sabo Mohammed Nakudu; Sadiq Umar; Abdullahi Gumel;  Barau Jibrin; Adeleke Adeyemi Oriolowo; Danladi Sankara; Ifeanyi Uba; Suleiman Abdu Kwari; Haliru Dauda Jika; Bello Mandiya; Ibrahim Oloriegbe; Ashiru Yisa Oyelola and Prince Adedayo Adeyeye.