PDP Senators Get Juicy Appointments As Saraki Names Committees

Sunday Aborisade, Abuja

Senate President, Bukola Saraki, on Wednesday, unveiled the leadership of the 65 standing committees of the Eighth Senate, saddled with the oversight responsibilities of the chamber in the next four years.

Our correspondent observed that eight committees had been added to the former 57 standing committees it inherited from the Seventh Senate.

A breakdown of the figure revealed that the ruling All Progressives Congress produced 41 committee chairmen while the opposition Peoples Democratic Party got 24 committee chairmen.
Out of the 41 committee chairmen that went to the APC, the ‘Like Minds’ senators, who are Saraki loyalists, got 28 while the Unity Forum members in the senate got 13.

A further breakdown of the committees’ leadership revealed that the South-West geopolitical zone got 11 committee chairmen, the North-West got 11, the South-East got 10, the North-Central got 12 just as the North-East got 11 while the South-South got 10.

The PDP senators who got juicy committees include James Manager (Power); Ben Murray-Bruce (Privatisation); Hope Uzodinma (Aviation); Godfrey Utazi (Anti-corruption and Financial Crimes); John Enoh (Finance); Uche Ekwunife (Downstream Petroleum) and Joshua Lidani (Drugs and Narcotics).

Others are Olaka Nwogu (Environment); Bassey Albert (Gas); George Sekibo (Interior); Sam Egwu (Industry); and Public Accounts (Andy Ubah); Rose Oko (Diaspora and Civil Societies); Emmanuel Paulker (Establishment and Public Service); Matthew Urhoghide (Culture and Tourism); Duro Faseyi (Air Force); and Enyinnaya Abaribe (Information and National Orientation), among others.

The members of the Unity Forum, a group of senators, who supported Senator Ahmad Lawan’s bid for the Senate Presidency, got committees on Defence, Police Affairs, National Planning, Housing and Women Affairs.

Lawan, the foremost challenger of Saraki in the heated contest for the senate presidency, was appointed as the chairman, committee on Defence while the Chairman of the Unity Forum, Senator Barnabas Gemade, was named the chairman of the Housing committee.

Also, Senator Abu Ibrahim, a strong member of the Unity Forum, was named the Chairman on Police Affairs, while Senator Oluremi Tinubu is the Chairman, Committee on Women Affairs while Danjuma Goje is in charge of Appropriation.

Other members of the Senate Unity Froum, who got chairmanship positions, are Senator Gbenga Ashafa (Land and Transport) and Kabiru Marafa (National Identity Card); Ajayi Boroffice (Science and Technicolgy); George Akume (Army); Isiaka Adeleke (Capital Market); Suleiman Nazif (Employment, Labour and Productivity); and AbdulFatai Buhari (ICT and Cybercrime).

The Like Minds senators named as chairmen are Ahmed Sani (Marine Transport); Mohammed Ohiare (Public Procurement); Ali Wakili (Poverty Alleviation); Abdullahi Adamu (Agriculture); Monsurat Sunmonu (Foreign Affairs); and Shaaba Lafiagi (National Security and Intelligence).

Others are Rafiu Ibrahim (Banking, Insurance and other financial institutions);. Gilbert Nnaji (Communications); Sani Danladi (Co-operation and Integration in Africa and New Partnership for Africa’s Development); Bukar Ibrahim (Ecology and Climate Change); Shehu Sani (Local and Foreign Debts); and Aliyu Abdullahi (Media and Public Affairs).

Others are Rabiu Kwankwaso (National Planning and Economic Affairs); Salihu Egye (Federal Character and Inter-governmental Affairs); and Usman Nafada (Inter-parliamentary Affairs); David Umaru (Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal Matters).

The chairmen also include Aliyu Wamakko (Basic and Secondary Education); Dino Melaye (Federal Capital Territory); Adamu Aliero (Customs and Excise); Lanre Tejuoso (Health); and Abubakar Kyari (Independent National Electoral Commission).

Earlier, the Senate had set up four special committees, namely: Rules and Business (Babajide Omoworare); Senate Services, (Ibrahim Gobir), Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions (Samuel Anyanwu); and the selection committee headed by Saraki.

Our correspondent also observed that the immediate past Senate President, David Mark; a former Governor of Plateau State, Jonah Jang; and a former Governor of Abia State, Theodore Orji, were not named by Saraki as heads of committees.

Saraki advised the committee chairmen and their members to ensure that they hold regular meetings to fashion out ways of strengthening their oversight functions, stressing that the Eighth Senate must do things differently to be able to achieve positive results.