Drama in the red chamber on Monday over the screening of a Ministerial nominee, Festus Keyamo.
The reason behind the rowdy session was when Darlington Nwokocha (LP, Abia Central), moved the motion requesting the suspension of the nominee’s screening.
According to the senator, when Keyamo was a minister of state for labour and employment under former president Muhammadu Buhari’s Administration, he insulted the lawmakers from both chambers.
He raised concerns over corruption charges and his failure to heed the National Assembly summons in 2020 during the screening process for his ministerial position. The charges were related to the employment scheme for 774,000 Nigerians recruited for the special public works programme.
After being seconded, the Senate President, GodsWill Akpabio, conducted a voice vote on the motion. However, the lawmakers responded in a chaotic manner, collectively shouting “no” and “yes”.
Keyamo, at a time, was a minister of state for labour and employment under former president Muhammadu Buhari’s Administration.
In April 2020, the Federal Government approved the recruitment of 774,000 Nigerians for a special public works program, aiming to have 1000 people per Local Government Area (LGA).
The program was implemented by the National Directorate of Employment as part of the fiscal stimulus measures adopted in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The project resulted in a confrontation between Keyamo and the National Assembly, as he was compelled to leave the Senate when he refused to resolve the matter behind closed doors during his appearance at the Red Chamber in June 2020.
While the lawmakers alleged that their constituents did not benefit from the scheme.
The nominee, Keyamo, faced major friction with lawmakers due to alleged infractions during his tenure as Minister of State for Labour and Employment, along with other related issues.
The argument sparked by the keyamo’s case led some lawmakers to call for a division, a decision that could potentially weaken the power of the Senate President.
“division in the parliament” refers to a situation where the lawmakers are divided in their opinions or votes on a particular issue. It means that there is a disagreement or split among the members of the parliament regarding a specific matter being discussed or voted upon.
In this case, the division occurred due to the argument over the keyamo’s case, leading some lawmakers to call for a division, which could potentially impact the power of the Senate President.
The lawmakers physically take sides with any of the votes either in favour of Yay or Nay.
The Senate President, who was visibly troubled, then stood up and called for order.
According to the Senate Standing Orders, when the Senate President stands, every other lawmaker must sit.
Having restored order in the house, Akpabio called for a closed-door session and the lawmakers have since adjourned the plenary till 3:30pm.
