House Of Reps Committees: APC Members Protest
Some All Progressives Congress (APC) members of the House of Representatives have reportedly asked the speaker, Yakubu Dogara, to retrieve the oil and gas sector committee from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
The members, who are aggrieved over the decision of Dogara to give the PDP committees regarded as ''juicy'', expressed disgust at the speaker's action.
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According to them, it is unbelievable that such key committees will be given to the opposition in a government where the APC is the ruling party and the party with the majority in the legislature.
Dogara named the chairmen and deputy chairmen of 96 standing committees of the House on Thursday, October 22.
Forty-eight members of the APC were picked as chairmen, while 46 members of the PDP were picked. For the position of deputy chairman 54 APC members were picked, while the PDP had 38.
The speaker had given several key committees to the PDP including the three oil and gas sector committees.
Among the committees chaired by the PDP are the committees on petroleum resources (upstream), petroleum resources (downstream), gas resources, power, aviation, works; the air force, the environment and the Niger Delta Development Commission.
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Already, two APC lawmakers have rejected their appointment in the week as a form of protest against Dogara's decision.
They are the former deputy House minority whip, Garba Dhatti-Muhammad, and a member from Oyo state, Sunday Adepoju.
Dhatti-Muhammad was named the chairman of the House Committee on solid minerals development, while Adepoju was chosen as the deputy chairman of the committee on special duties.
Reacting to the rejection by the two members, the chairman of the House committee on media and public affairs, Abdulrazak Namdas, told The Punch that he his amazed by his colleagues' decision.
He pointed out that some colleagues lost sight of the fact that the APC had already taken care of the government’s finances by holding on to the committees on appropriations, finance and customs, among others.
“The APC already chairs appropriations and finance. We have customs; we have others. Appropriation is the primary function of the parliament,” he said.
READ ALSO: Committee Appointments: Reps Defend Dogara, Others Protest
In a related development, a member of the House of Representatives, Ahmed Kaita, has said that the “change" agenda of President Muhammadu Buhari could be sabotaged by the alleged lopsidedness of the composition of house committees.
In a similar vein, the majority leader of the House, Femi Gbajabiamila had said that Dogara did not consult him prior to the announcement of the chairmen of the standing committees.
Source: Legit.ng
