The immediate past Governor of Rivers
State, Chibuike Amaechi must have heaved a sigh of relief on Thursday, when his
ministerial screening which has been the subject of controversy for three weeks
eventually took place amid the protest staged by senators of the Peoples
Democratic Party (PDP) who boycotted the process.
Amaechi, who was ushered into the chamber
at about 11:30am, was accompanied by the National Chairman of the All
Progressives Congress (APC), Chief John Odigie Oyegun, Senators Olorunnimbe
Mamora, Victor Ndoma-Egba, Domingo Obende and Hon. Dakuku Peterside, among
others.
Before the commencement of the screening,
the Senate had dissolved into a closed-door session where it sought to secure a
consensus on Amaechi's screening with a view to making it rancour-free.
Both the APC and PDP caucuses in the
Senate had been polarised along party lines, with the APC senators calling for
his screening without any hindrance while the PDP senators pushed for the
adoption of the report of the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public
Petition which had recommended the suspension of Amaechi’s screening in view of
the suit in court over allegations of corruption.
The committee had suspended investigation
into the petition against Amaechi submitted by The Integrity Group. The group
had accused him of diverting N70 billion of Rivers State money into his private
account.
However, Senate President Bukola Saraki
knowing the insistence of PDP senators that the report should be debated, only
asked the committee chairman, Senator Samuel Anyanwu, to lay it without
allowing him to read it, neither did he open the floor for its debate.
Eventually, Amaechi was ushered into the
chamber, and was asked by the Senate president to address the Senate on any
issue he wished to speak about.
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