The name of the immediate-past Governor of Kaduna State, Nasir el-Rufai was, on Monday, missing from the list of the ministerial nominees confirmed by the Senate.
Also missing on the list was the name of Senator Abubakar Danlandi from Taraba State and former Nexim Bank Managing Director, Stella Okotete (Delta State).
The Senate approved and confirmed 45 out of the 48 nominees sent by President Bola Tinubu.
According to impeccable sources in the Senate, the unconfirmed nominees are currently undergoing security checks.
One of the sources noted, “Based on the findings, the nominees are currently undergoing security checks, having found some things against them.”
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Another source told The Punch that, “We are observing them and we believe that there are some things that are incriminating against them. So, we have sent their names back to the executive for necessary checks.”
Corroborating the source, the Senate spokesperson, Yemi Adaramodu, explained that the Red Chamber confirmed 45 names, while three others were still undergoing further legislative actions.
Adaramodu said, “Forty-eight names were, sent comprising both males and females. Forty-five were confirmed; the three others are awaiting further legislative actions, which will be hinged on other arms of government, having given us all the necessary impetus to do the final screening.
“But today, out of the 48 names sent, 45 have been confirmed and approved as ministers of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
“This will be communicated to the President alongside the three other names which are still awaiting further legislative actions.”
The Punch reported that a couple of petitions, including those sent by Senator Sunday Karimi (APC, Kogi West), were presented against El-Rufai during the screening.
The lawmaker representing Kogi West, during the ministerial screening, moved against the former Kaduna State governor.
Karimi, after el-Rufai’s presentations, stood up and told the chamber that he had a petition written against the former governor over the issue of insecurity in Southern Kaduna.
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He said, “Your performance in any office you find yourself in the country has been outstanding. In the Bureau of Public Enterprises, your record is there; in the FCT, as a minister, your record is there, and as two-time governor of Kaduna state, you did well.”
Raising up a brown envelope, Karimi further stated, “But, I have a very strong petition against you that borders on security, unity and cohesiveness of the Nigerian nation.
“And I think that the petition has to be considered in this screening exercise.”
Karimi then proceeded to lay the petition before Jibrin Barau, the Deputy Senate president, who was presiding over the screening exercise at the time.
But in his intervention, the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, said, “This is not the place to consider petitions, we will sit with the petitions later and refer them to relevant authorities.”
Also, The Punch reported that there was a petition against Dalandi about a court judgment restricting him from holding public office for 10 years.
However, when asked to respond to allegations that the Supreme Court had barred him from holding political office for 10 years for lying on oath, Danladi denied such.
Copies of some petitions against Okotete in the public space also confirmed that there were several petitions against the former Nexim Bank MD, including alleged non-disclosure of assets to the Code of Conduct Bureau.