The Nation Newspaper

Tag: House of Reps

  • Tambuwal: Hearing on suit against IGP stalled

    Tambuwal: Hearing on suit against IGP stalled

    Hearing was stalled on Wednesday in the application filed by House of Representatives Speaker, Aminu Tambuwal, seeking to compel the Inspector General of Police, Suleiman Abba, to explain why he should not be jailed for failing to recognize him (Tambuwal) in his official capacity as the Speaker.

    Tambuwal had filed a motion ex-parte in which he argued that Abba’s refusal to recognise him as the Speaker when he appeared before the House of Reps Committee on Police Affairs on November 26 was a violation of the order made by the court on November 7, directing parties in the suit he (Tambuwal) filed to maintain the status quo.

    He sought an order directing Abba to appear “in person and show cause why he should not be committed to prison for contempt of the court order of November 7, 2014 and/or for acting in manners and ways which showed disrespect to the court.”

    In a ruling last Friday, Justice Ahmed Mohammed converted the motion ex-parte to a motion on notice and fixed hearing for Wednesday. He also refused two applications filed by some individuals who sought to be parties in the case filed by Tambuwal over the withdrawal of his security aides and the threat by the Peoples Democratic Party to declare his seat vacant upon his defection from the party.

    However, the scheduled hearing was stalled when lawyers to those who sought to join the suit told the court that they had appealed the court’s ruling and wanted the court to stay proceedings on the matter.

     

  • Reps shift resumption to December 16

    Reps shift resumption to December 16

    …Authentic impeachment list out soon- Gbajabiamila

    The House of Representatives has extended its resumption by two weeks.

    The House was due to resume on Wednesday from its recess which began on October 28.

    However, the Clerk of the House of Representatives, Mohammed Sani-Omolori, in a statement on Tuesday said the House will now resume on December 16.

    According to him, the postponement was necessitated by the political party activities leading to primaries to be conducted by all political parties during the period.

    It reads: “This is to notify members of the House of Representatives that the resumption of the House from recess earlier scheduled for December 3, 2014 has been postponed.

    “The House will now resume on Tuesday, December 16, 2014 at 10am.

    “The Leadership of the House of Representatives took note of the adjustment in the calendar of the political parties and took the decision for the postponement to allow members of the House participate in the forthcoming primaries of their political parties.”

    In a related development, the All Progressives Congress caucus in the House has washed its hands off a list purported to have the signatures of lawmakers rooting for the impeachment of President Goodluck Jonathan.

    A statement issued by the Leader of the opposition in the House, Femi Gbajabiamila, described the list as “fake.”

    A list of over 200 lawmakers from the House of Representatives, including principal officers of the House from the Peoples Democratuc Party (PDP) were published in some online platforms as those that had signed Jonathan’s impeachment list.

    But Gbajabiamila said the real list would be made public soon.

    The statement reads:

    “The general public is hereby advised to disregard a fake impeachment list published by some online publicists for obvious sinister intentions.

    “None of our APC members in the House of Representatives is party to the fake impeachment list.

    “The authentic impeachment list would be published in due course and we urge our constituents across the country to be so guided.”

  • Drama, anger as IGP appears before Reps

    Drama, anger as IGP appears before Reps

    There was drama, anger as the Inspector  General of Police, Suleiman Abba, finally showed up at the House of Representatives on Wednesday.

    This was the second invitation.

    The meeting was however ill- fated. It ended abruptly because he blatantly refused to acknowledge Aminu Tambuwal as Speaker in his speech, drawing the ire of members of the Committee.

    That was not all. He described the lawmakers that climbed the gate to assess the Assembly complex on November 20 as ” suspected hoodlums” and blamed the security beef-up at the National Assembly on that day on the Salvation Rally by All People Congress a day before that.

    Abba said because of the “suspected hoodlums that followed Tambuwal,” into the NASS complex, a tear gas canister ” exploded” and that the incident is being investigated.

    The Chairman of the committee and members insisted that Abbah recognize Tambuwal as Speaker, but the IGP said he would not as the case was in court and addressing Tambuwal as “Speaker” would be “subjudice.”

    The meeting ended on a frosty note. The IGP left without the courtesy of the Chairman seeing him off. This was because members of the committee insisted the Chairman Usman Kumo would not.

    They cordoned Kumo off and vowed he would not accord the IGP such a privilege.

    A day previously, the IGP has rebuffed the invitation of the Senate and had send a deputy and a week before that, he had also shunned the Police Affairs Committee of the House.

    Rather than honour the invitation, the IGP sent a letter to the Committee explaining his absence. He also sent a Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG), SL Wakama to represent him.

  • Bank-Anthony Declares for House of Reps

    Bank-Anthony Declares for House of Reps

    Chieftain of All Progressives Congress (APC) in Lagos State and staunch member of the defunct National Democratic Coalition NADECO, (abroad) Mr. Babatunde Bank-Anthony has picked nomination form seeking his party’s ticket for the Federal House of Representatives in the 2015 general election.

    Bank-Anthony who picked the nomination form of the party at the party secretariat in Lagos yesterday said he was opting to represent Surulere II Federal Constituency, to give the people quality representation at the House of Representatives. He is presently the executive secretary of the Lagos State Sports Endowment Fund (LSSEF) where he has contributed tremendously to the development of sports in Lagos State.

  • Reps caution PDP, others on Tambuwal’s defection

    Reps caution PDP, others on Tambuwal’s defection

    Following the defection of the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Aminu Tambuwal, to the All Progressives Congress on Tuesday, the House said it has noted that many commentators are speaking in ignorance by asking the Speaker to vacate his position over the defection.

    A statement issued by the House Deputy Chairman, Media and Public Affairs, Victor Afam Ogene, under the title “YouCan’t Regulate Our Procedure from Outside” reads:

    “Barely 24 hours after Rt. Hon. Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, CFR, Speaker of the House of Representatives, announced a switch of party allegiance from the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC), several individuals, party chieftains and groups have gone on frenzy, dishing out varied interpretations to the decision.

    “In the main, many of these commentators, rather than correctly stating what the true position of the law and the House rules are, take delight in advertising ignorance of both, with some even advocating a recourse to anarchy as a way of achieving what they imagine ought to be the ‘solution’ to the issue.

    “Following several inquiries by especially journalists and some members of the public, it is easy to narrow the concerns to two key issues. One, whether Speaker Tambuwal ought to vacate his seat as Representative of Kebbe/ Tambuwal  Federal  Constituency, Sokoto State, by virtue of section 68 (1) (g), of the 1999 Nigerian Constitution, as amended; and two, if he shouldn’t step down as Speaker, having defected from the majority party in the House to a minority platform.

    “On the first issue, it is a common knowledge that following the defection of 37 members of the House in December 2013, from the PDP to APC, there had been multiple court cases on the matter, thus rendering it subjudice to discuss any likely outcome. Everyone is thus enjoined to await final judicial pronouncement on the issue of defection, which has afflicted virtually all political parties in the land.

    “Concerning calls for Mr. Speaker to step down from the position which his colleagues freely elected him to on June 6, 2011, we wish to reaffirm – even with the pains of almost sounding monotonous – that the Speakership of the House of Representatives, or indeed, any other national elective position, belongs to the generality of Nigerians, and not the political platforms upon which such leaders emerge.

    “While the case of Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, who as a sitting Vice President moved to another political party – and did not get judicial reprobation for the act – is still fresh in our memories, the clear provisions of Section 50(1) (b) of the Nigerian Constitution easily settles the worries regarding the continued Speakership of Rt. Hon. Tambuwal.”

     

  • $9:3m: Another rowdy session in House over alleged bribery

    Another spectacle played out Wednesday on the floor of the House of Representatives as a member, Aliyu Madaki (APC-Kano), accused members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) of collecting $20,000 to stop debate on the $9.3 million cash smuggled to South Africa purportedly for purchase of arms.

    Madaki reacted to accusations from members of the PDP that he accused them in media reports of collecting $50,000 to truncate the motion moved by the Deputy Minority Leader, Ismaila Kawu, on Tuesday.

    However, Madaki stood his grounds, saying he actually gave the interviews, but that the PDP lawmakers collected $20,000 and not $50,000 as stated in the reports.

    He said, “What happened was that I received a call to confirm, if members were given $50,000 each to kill the motion and I said that what I know is that (PDP) members were given $20,000 each.”

    But angry PDP lawmakers insisted that Madaki should list those who received the bribe. This put proceedings in the House on pause for a while.

    Earlier, Albert Sam-Tsokwa, the chairman, House Committee on Rules and Business, while standing on Order 8, Rule 20 of the House, had insisted that the motion, which was not debated on Tuesday, was in line with the House rules.

    He, however, denied knowledge of the bribery allegation, adding that the newspaper reports breached his privilege as a lawmaker in the House of Representatives.

    He said, “It is not to my knowledge that $50,000 was paid to me or any other member (of the PDP). My privilege, as an honourable member, has been, and is being breached. As I stated on Tuesday, infrastructure and related motions are not to be debated. It is contained in our rules,”

  • Reps summon security chiefs over Maigari’s detention

    Reps summon security chiefs over Maigari’s detention

    Nigeria’s top security chiefs have been asked by the House of Representatives to explain why Nigeria Football Federation president, Aminu Maigari was detained without any charges brought against him.

    Maigari’s detention stopped him from presiding over the NFF general assembly on Tuesday, africanFootball.com reports.

    However, the NFF president has said he would not to take any legal action for his unlawful arrest, saying God will remain his refuge.

    Several football stakeholders in Nigeria spoke at a Friday public hearing called by the House of Representatives to address the crisis.

    The chairman of the NFF technical committee, Chris Green, gave a graphic account of their harrowing experience at the anti-robbery squad cells in Abuja, where he and Maigari were kept on Tuesday.

    “It was a most dehumanising ordeal,” said Green, whose narration caused several of those attending the hearing to weep.

    Chairman of Nigeria Coaches’ Association, Bitrus Bewarang, equally produced a Plateau State White paper which indicted Chris Giwa.

    He closed his presentation by warning this revelation would put his life in danger.

  • Alison-Madueke: House ignores court summons

    The House of Representatives on Monday shunned a Federal High Court, Abuja, order, directing it to appear and explain where it got the information that the court has stopped the investigation of the Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Alison-Madueke, for allegedly expending about N10billion in hiring aircraft.
    The court insisted that the order it made on April 29 stands and that House of Representatives must obey the order by appearing before it.
    Justice Ahmed Mohammed had made the order on April 29 upon media reports quoting the House of Representatives’ spokesman, Zakari Mohammed, as claiming that the planned investigation of Alison-Madueke and the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation by the House’s Committee on Public Accounts had been stopped by the court.
    The House of Representatives reportedly told the media on April 28 (a day the Minister and top officials of NNPC were expected to appear before it) that it was suspending its investigation into the N10b aircraft lease allegation on account of a purported restraining order from the court.
    On Monday, the House was neither represented by its official nor a lawyer, prompting plaintiff’s lawyer, Etigwe Uwa (SAN) to observe that the House of Reps (who is the 2nd defendant in the case) was treating the case with levity and urged the court to compel its appearance in court.
    Uwa noted that the House has consistently refused to attend court despite being served with court processes and hearing notices as directed by the court.

  • I didn’t stop Alison-Madueke’s investigation – Judge

    I didn’t stop Alison-Madueke’s investigation – Judge

    A Federal High Court in Abuja on Tuesday summoned the House of Representatives to explain where it got its information that it has stopped the investigation of the Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Alison-Madueke for allegedly expending about N10billion in hiring aircraft.
    The House of Representatives reportedly claimed on Monday that the court presided over by Justice Ahmed Mohammed had restrained it from proceeding with the planned investigation of the minister and the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) over the aircraft lease allegation.
    On Tuesday, Justice Mohammed expressed displeasure about the claim credited to the House of Representatives. He said his court never granted any order stopping Alison-Madueke’sprobe by the lower legislative chamber.
    The judge said he was worried by the confusing reports in the media, which was a clear misrepresentation of the proceedings in court. He said he woke up to calls inquiring if he actually stopped the investigation.
    Plaintiffs’ lawyer, Etigwe Uwa (SAN), said he was also surprised about the reports. He said he equally got calls and had to do a statement to some media houses to correct the wrong information.
    Lawyer to the National Assembly (1st defendant), Yakubu Maikyau (SAN), said he knew something was wrong with the way the media reports came out.
    He said the suspicion that there something was wrong was supported by the fact that the court’s ruling, on which the media reports were based, was delivered on April 14 but was only published to coincide with when the minister was expected to appear before the lawmakers.
    Maikyau, who apologised to the court on behalf of his client, said he believed if such order was made, it would have been reported before now.
    Ruling, Justice Mohammed held that since the confusion emanated from the House of Representatives, he will adjourn the matter to enable the House, who was not represented, to come and clear the air on the reports.
    “I have seen the press release in the media said to be released by the House of Representatives that this court has ordered the stop of the investigation of the Minister of Petroleum Resources.
    “As far as I am concerned, and I am the judge handling this matter, no such order was made,” Justice Mohammed said.

     

  • I am not under pressure to resign – Tambuwal

    I am not under pressure to resign – Tambuwal

    The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, has said he is not under pressure from any quarter to resign his appointment.
    The Speaker in a statement issued by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Imam Imam, said the story of the purported resignation, as published in a daily newspaper (not The Nation) on Tuesday, is not true.
    The statement reads: “For all intents and purposes, this is part of a larger campaign to smear the person and integrity of the Number Four Citizen of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
    “The story did not come as a surprise considering that it is one in a line of similar fabricated stories dished out about Tambuwal by Pilot Newspaper for sometimes now.
    “While we don’t want to believe that the owners of the newspaper have allowed their platform to be used for a smear campaign on the legislature and its principal officers, we are constrained to say that allowing falsehood to be published in the guise of truth takes seeking-relevance (by the paper) too far.
    “We want to assure Nigerians that the leadership of the House of Representatives is ever focused on delivering its constitutional mandate and will not be distracted by the antics of those who have something to hide.
    “Speaker Tambuwal and his colleagues won’t resign their appointments and they won’t be distracted from their stated goals.”