Aside the rancourous June 9 speakership election, the announcement of the heads of Standing Committees in the 8th House of Representatives has returned the Green Chambers to the path of intra-party acrimony.
The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara did not consult with some Principal Officers before the appointment of chairmen and deputies of the 96 Standing Committees announced on October 22, Majority Leader of the House, Femi Gbajabiamila alleged in a leaked protest letter on Tuesday.
Gbajabiamila said the Speaker’s action breached provisions of the House Rules. Order 7 Rule 10, paragraph (a) which states that the Speaker “shall in consultation with principal officers, appoint the chairmen and deputy chairmen from among the members of the committee”.
But in a swift refutal, Dogara’s office released two memos showing that the appointment of committee heads was jointly done by the leadership of the House comprising all principal officers at a scheduled meeting.
The memos were a letter of invitation sent to all the nine principal officers (including Gbajabiamia) dated, October 21, 2015 by the Chief of Staff to the Speaker, Hon. Jerry Manwe. They were to consult on appointment of committee heads on Thursday, October 22, 2015.
The other memo was a list of attendance with all nine principal officers dated October 22, issued after the meeting.
Gbajabiamila’s letter to Dogara dated, October 20, 2015 reads: “You would racall that I have on several occasions in the last four weeks, met with you both at home and in your office to get an understanding and appreciation of what was going on with the composition and appointment of chairmen and deputy chairmen of House Committees.
“I did this because of the incessant rumour that same had been composed. On each occasion, you assured me that nothing had been done. From all indications however it appears that an announcement of the chairmen and deputy chairmen is imminent and such may be done this week.
“Hon. Speaker, I acknowledge your right and prerogative to determine the leadership of the House Committees and I intend to work with you after such determination has been made.
I intend and have stated on many occasions privately and publicly to work with you for the progress of the House.
“However, I am constrained at this point to ask that due consideration is given to the provisions of our House Rules. Order 7 Rule 10, paragraph (a) of the House rules which states that the Speaker “shall in consultation with principal officers, appoint the chairmen and deputy chairmen from among the members on the committee.
“On the role of the Majority/House Leader: Order 7 Rule 27 (2)c says that the leader of the House shall “liaise with Committee Chairmen and other functionaries of the House.
“Hon. Speaker, in the light of the foregoing provisions of our Rules and in line with parliamentary tradition world over, undermining the office of the Leader or any other principal officer would not strengthen the legislature or our democracy.
“The situation where any principal officer whether from the majority or minority party only knows of the appointment referred to above upon announcement on the floor will not augur well for the progress of this House.
“I have taken the liberty to write to you on this matter for record purposes and in the hope that every principal officer in this House would be given its due as enshrined in our House Rules. Accept the assurances of my highest regards.”
Political expediency
Pre-election agreements entered by Dogara with the opposition PDP caucus and some APC members before the closely contested June 9 Speakership election shaped the composition of the 8th House Standing Committees.
Recall that 96 Standing Committee chairmen and their deputies were appointed – APC got 48 to PDP’s 45. In a further breakdown, APC got 55 Deputy chairmen while the PDP caucus accounted for 39.
Of the 48 APC chairmen, 26 are Gbajabiamila’s supporters. Again, of 54 deputy chairmen 29 are from Gbajabiamila’s camp.
APC loyalists maintain that the composition and quality of the headships of the committees was skewed in favour of PDP members, whose support helped Dogara become Speaker against Gbajabiamila, who was supported by the party. They have accused the Speaker of weakening the caucus going by the composition of the committee headship.
A natioal daily has described Dogara’s move to arm the PDP caucus and his APC supporters with first-rate committees as politically expedient.
“…should Dogara not reward his PDP supporters with committee chairmanship, the aggrieved ones among them could go into alliance with Gbajabiamila’s supporters to give him trouble or possibly oust him. To this set of analysts, giving PDP lawmakers 45 committees to head was a politically expedient move from Dogara.
Not only did PDP members get committees, but they succeeded in attracting more than 20 committees termed as juicy. Dogara also rewarded most of his APC loyalists, who risked serious sanction from the party by supporting him, with grade ‘A’ committees,” the report.
Rejected appointments
After the announcement of committee heads, two-term member of House Garba Mohammed Datti rejected his appointment as Chairman, House Committee on Solid Minerals. He was quickly replaced by Samaila Suleiman (Kaduna/APC).
Two days after, another House member, Sunday Adepoju (APC/Oyo) resigned his position as deputy chairman of the Committee on Special Duties.
Datti, who was immediate-past Deputy Minority Whip of the House said he was not consulted before being named.
Datti, a member of the APC from Kaduna State during the plenary presided over by the Deputy Speaker Yussuf Lasun raised a point of order bothering on personal explanations to announce the rejection of his appointment.
The lawmaker who staged a walkout after the incident however explained that his action was not based on any grievances but on his “principled disposition”.
“I feel as a former principal officer, I should have been consulted before my name was announced. I just heard of it on the floor. I have my own principles. I have decided on my own to withdraw as the chairman of that committee,” Datti told journalists outside the House chambers.
Datti continued: “I should have been consulted. If the president wants to appoint his ministers, before the announcement, he has to consult them.”
Well, one of Dogara’s loyalists, Mustapha Bala Dawaki, has dismissed any member of the House who rejects his appointment to head or deputise any committee as after money and not service.
Dawaki (Kano/APC) said the minority PDP caucus in the House has the numerical strength to block proposed reform legislation/resolutions if not adequately carried along in the affairs of the House.
Meanwhile, Dogara has shunned entreaties from members of his party, APC, to review the list of committee heads which he released with a view to giving the ruling party a comfortable grip on the leadership of the lower House of parliament.
The Speaker met behind closed-door on Tuesday with all chairmen and deputies in what was termed as a “familiarisation meeting”. Gbajabiamila snubbed the meeting despite a formal invitation.
At the meeting, the Speaker made it clear that the committees were composed to reflect what he called ‘bi-partisan cohesion’ and national interest and was not ready to bend backwards.
Dogara reportedly chided APC members who had rejected committees allotted to them, accusing them of not helping to advance the Change mantra of the present administration.
‘Due process’
The House spokesman, Abdulrazak Sa’ad Namdas says that the selection of the chairmen and deputies of the 96 House Standing Committees followed due process and was in line with the principles of the constitutionally-backed federal character.
The newly-appointed Chairman, House Committee on Media and Public Affairs justifying Dogara’s appointment said aside 10 House principal officers, the remaining 350 House members got “at least two Grade A Committees”.
Namdas said: “The truth is that we (House) have 360 members, two presiding officers and 10 other principal officers. Ten are already out so we are left with 350 lawmakers.
“In sharing these committees, due process was actually followed. We statistically ensured that every member has at least two Grade A committees or what is general referred to as juicy committees.
“Part of the reason why we are doing this is to ensure that the leadership of the House runs an all-inclusive administration with all Nigerians having a sense of belonging. We are having a pan-Nigeria situation. We want to ensure that all sections of the country and of all the parties are also carried along.
“This idea of saying certain people are not carried along is not true. All due process was actually followed. It is with fairness and the interest of Nigeria.”
Namdas said certain committees like the Petroleum upstream and downstream traditionally went to the South. Likewise committees on Agriculture, Water Resources and Education went to the North, he said.
“It is a convention and we will not change it and that is why this has been located to them. The leadership has done everything to meet up with federal character and that is why I said that all sections and parties are carried along in this process so that legislative business will be carried on smoothly and the change mantra is there for us,” he said.
Namdas stated that Gbajabiamila was “properly consulted” in the appointment of heads of committees. He advised aggrieved members of APC caucus to bury their hatchets and work towards the progress of the country.
Namdas: “The House Leader was properly consulted in the composition of committees. The Speaker respects every member and he has never undermined any principal officer. Appointment into committees is the sole responsibility of the Speaker with consultation with the principal officers.
“As members, we are expected to work in the interest of Nigeria. The APC caucus met and resolved after the Speakership election to bury hatchets. I think we should abide by that.”
For now, APC National Chairman, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun has waded into the matter as he met separately with the Speaker Dogara and House Leader Gbajabiamila.
Oyegun, it was gathered, earlier met with Gbajabiamila and later Dogara, who was accompanied by his Deputy, Yussuff Sulaimon Lasun, at his Asokoro, Abuja residence Friday morning.
“The party met with only Speaker and his Deputy this morning as they already did same with Leader few days ago concerning [the] Committee crisis”, a senior legislative source privy to the meeting and who asked not to be named confirmed the meeting.
When contacted, Dogara’s spokesman, Turaki Hassan said he was unable to confirm the meeting. “I am not aware of the meetings so I can’t confirm or refute”, he said on phone.
However, it was learnt that Oyegun in a reconciliatory move summoned Dogara and Gbajabiamila after Dogara was accused by Gbajabiamila of not consulting with Principal Officers in the appointment of chairmen and deputies of the 96 Standing Committees of the House announced on October 22.
It is yet to be seen how the issue would be resolved as the lingering crises that has plagued the lower chamber is causing unnecessary distractions and taking a toll on legislative duties. Nigerians can only continue to watch how the crisis unfolds.
-Leadership
