Senate screens Oyetola, Lalong, Matawalle, Bagudu, 15 others today (LIVE UPDATES)

The Senate will reconvene today to screen the second batch of the ministerial nominees transmitted to it by President Bola Tinubu.

Mr Tinubu, in a correspondence delivered by his chief of staff, Femi Gbajabiamila, to the upper house on Wednesday, presented a list of 19 nominees for confirmation. This brings the total number of ministerial nominees to 47.

The president had on Thursday last week submitted a list of 28 nominees drawn from 25 states of the federation.

Among those on the list who will appear before the lawmakers today are five former governors, three former federal lawmakers, two women and a host of others.

The former governors are Simon Lalong (Plateau), Ibrahim Geidam (Yobe), Bello Matawalle (Zamfara), Atiku Bagudu (Kebbi) and Adegboyega Oyetola (Osun).

Also to be screened are former lawmakers, namely Sabi Abdullahi (Niger), Alkali Saidu (Gombe), Zephaniah Jisalo (FCT), and Heineken Lokpobiri (Bayelsa), who is also a former minister of state for agriculture and rural development.

They were picked from the remaining 11 states excluded from the earlier list of 28 nominees the president submitted to the Senate on 27 July.

Remarkably, for the first time in the last 30 years or thereabout, an Abuja indigene is nominated as a minister. Mr Jisalo is a two-time chairman of the Abuja Municipal Area Council and a former member of the House of Representatives for the AMAC/Bwari federal constituency.

Their nomination came the same day the lawmakers concluded the screening of the first batch of the ministers-designate.

The 28 nominees screened earlier this week for three days (Monday to Wednesday) have yet to be confirmed by the senators.

It is speculated that the lawmakers have elected to conclude the screening of the second batch before confirming or rejecting any of the 47 nominees.

In accordance with their rules, the senators will conduct today’s exercise, which commences at 11 a.m. at the Committee of the Whole presided over by the senate president whose designation is “chairman” while the exercise lasted.

During the screening, the nominees will be ushered into the hallowed chamber of the Senate one after the other by the special assistant to the president on National Assembly matters (Senate). Once a nominee mounts the podium, he will first introduce themselves, based on the resumes submitted and then field questions from the senators as directed by the senate president.

Also, former and sitting lawmakers, whether a member of the Senate or House of Representatives, enjoy the privilege of taking a “bow and go.” Nominees in this category are not usually asked questions after introducing themselves except senators want some clarity on certain issues.

However, in conducting the screening of the first batch of the nominees, this privilege was extended to some former governors including Nyesom Wike of Rivers, David Umahi of Ebonyi and Abubakar Badaru of Jigawa as well as some female nominees.

After the exercise, the 109-member will revert to the plenary where the senate president will report progress made at the Committee of the Whole.

It is not certain if the senators will conclude the screening of the 19 nominees today. If they do, there is the likelihood that it will confirm or reject any of the nominees as the case may be to enable them to proceed on their annual recess. The Senate did not only postpone its recess, but it also extended the sitting days and period beyond 2 p.m. to screen the ministers-designate.

Below is a list of 19 ministers-designate to be screened today. They are grouped by geopolitical zones.

South-south Zone

1. Heineken Lokpobiri – Bayelsa

North-east Zone

1. Tahir Mamman – Adamawa

2. Alkali Ahmed Saidu – Gombe

3. Uba Maigari Ahmadu – Taraba

4. Ibrahim Geidam – Yobe

North-west Zone

1. Maryam Shetti – Kano

2. Abdullahi T Gwarzo – Kano

3. Yusuf Tanko Sununu – Kebbi

4. Atiku Bagudu – Kebbi

5. Bello Matawwalle – Zamfara

South-west Zone

1. Tunji Alausa – Lagos

2. Lola Ade John – Lagos

3. Ishak Salako – Ogun

4. Bosun Tijjani – Ogun

5. Adegboyega Oyetola – Osun

North-central Zone

1. Zephaniah Bitrus Jisalo – FCT

2. Shuaibu A Audu – Kogi

3. Aliyu Sabi Abdullahi – Niger

4. Simon Lalong – Plateau