•We shouldn’t be unduly sensitive, Mark tells opposition
There was uproar in the Senate yesterday, over the constitutionality of granting approval for the $1 billion loan request by President Goodluck Jonathan to tackle lingering security challenges in the country.
Trouble started when the Chairman of Senate Joint Committee on Finance and Local and Foreign Debt, Senator Ahmad Makarfi, recommended the approval of the request. The report had been submitted to the Senate on Wednesday.
Senator Makarfi stated in the joint committee report that from the briefings received from relevant stakeholders and available documents received, it was discovered that helicopters were crucial for decisive victory in the war against terror, stressing that victory cannot be achieved without the use of helicopters due to the terrain and the nature of the operations.
The reports also noted that the number of helicopters in the fleet of the Nigeria Air Force was inadequate for effective deployment due to lack of adequate funds for maintenance.
Makarfi’s report also informed the chamber that Belarus had accepted to give helicopters on the condition of payment by installments over a seven-year period, while other hardware, armaments and equipment would be bought on the same terms from other European countries. The joint committee consequently recommended that Senate should approve the loan request.
But Senator Olubunmi Adetunmbi representing Ekiti North on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC) raised constitutional issues on the matter.
He informed the chamber that the $1 billion loan request was not captured in the current Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF), which was approved for 2014-2016 fiscal year.
However, Senator Makarfi countered Adetunmbi, saying: “With due respect, all the issues raised are not relevant to the issue we are considering now. The simple reason is that you asked a question on what is the definition of ‘in kindness’ and I said it is not cash flow or inflow and you talked of appropriation when there is cash inflow or outflow.
“You are taking goods on credit and the request said we are paying over seven years and each year we are going to make payment, it is going to be in the appropriation act. The National Assembly will have to appropriate the payment; the executive cannot just go outrightly and pay.”
“And what is required is in compliance with the Public Procurement Act which we are not required to see the compliance of that Public Procurement Act. The relevant committees, in doing their work, can follow up and see that there is compliance with the Public Procurement Act. The loan is in kind, there is no cash outflow and repayment will be so appropriated and will only be made subject to the approval of the National Assembly.”
At this juncture, the Senate President interjected. He said: “The question you ask is whether Adetunmbi is right in what he said or not and the simple answer is no, he is not right. So please, merely quoting the constitution does not make him to be right.
“Because he is quoting the constitution doesn’t mean he is right. Please, I want us to address the issue properly, I know he quoted constitution and he quoted from our Standing Order but that is not what makes him to be right. I will take few comments and I will put the question because this is democracy.
“I am not a lawyer and so I can’t say that these are legal issues and if they are legal issues, they have to be addressed separately. Our understanding here is not exactly like in the court of law.” The Senate Minority Leader, Senator George Akume while supporting the position of Senator Adetunmbi said, “The Distinguished Senator has raised fundamental issues touching on the Constitution of this country. He also read the relevant sections of our Standing Orders.
“Mr. President, our Constitution supersedes whatever my friend and brother, Senator Makarfi is talking about the Procurement Act. However, it is a huge document and Makarfi has not quoted the relevant sections to support what he is saying.
“Our distinguished Senator here (Adetunmbi) has quoted extensively from the Constitution, if they collide let us know which one overrules. Mr. President, we are speaking as members of the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. As members of the Senate, we want to be guided by the fundamental law of the country, the grand norm of our country which is the Constitution and if there is anything that contradicts let us know.
“Are we right on this side? If we are right Mr. President, let this issue which is being tried to be quoted by my friend be properly put into perspective. This is not politics. We are talking law. We are talking about the Constitution. We don’t want breaches. Breaches have been recorded in this country for so long.
“If they want to borrow let them follow what has been put down in the constitution so that we know that this is where they are doing. But whereas, here, we have raised fundamental issues that have not been overridden by anything. So Mr. President please, I want to appeal to you to be guided by the constitutional provisions as far as this matter is concerned.
“All of us are citizens of this country, we want to believe and strongly too, that where the security of this country is challenged we will all rise up as one house to support whatever measures that are being taken to address the situation. We have been appropriating money here.
“Whatever is brought here we say “yes, yes, yes” and today they say we want to borrow, there are so many avenues to do this. If they want to borrow, let us not borrow; let us take money from excess crude account to do this. If they don’t want to do that, let them take money from Sovereign Wealth Account.
“So Mr. President, I appeal to you as the leader of the legislature, please sir, I want you to defend the constitution and not to go by mere sentiments – political or otherwise. Let us be guided properly by the constitution. If the constitution is breached, honestly from this side, we will not support it. Honestly as leaders of this country, as Senators I want us to handle this issue appropriately devoid of partisan purposes.”
Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu in his comments on constitutional issues called for caution so that if would not seem as if one political party is interested in helping to curtail insurgency while another political party is not. “I will still come to the issue of the constitution but I would like to join the Senate President in our dealing that we do not go through any debate on this matter, because I am too worried about the character of the debate.
“I don’t want a situation where if we leave this chamber, and the public will believe that one political party is supporting a fight against insurgency and another political party is not supporting it.
“I am only asking for caution especially as it concerns the political party we belong so that Nigerians do not misunderstand us. Now, looking at the constitution sir,I agree that we must have to follow our constitution in what we do here but regrettably, section 80 and 81 cited have absolutely nothing to do with what we are doing here.
“Those points are only there in respect of appropriation. Borrowing is guided by a different legal framework, a different legislation which is in the Fiscal Responsibility Act and as far as I am concerned, even in regard to what he read, we are in full compliance, both this parliament and the president.
“In simple tense, what the law required for borrowing is that the president and the governor as the case may be will have to table the request for the borrowing before the appropriate parliament.
“In case of the federal government and the National Assembly, now that it has been tabled before us, what is left for us to do is for us to approve or otherwise. So the argument should be on whether to approve it or not but I believe that as I have sincerely said so, we are in full compliance with the law in this subject. So, I would like to appeal as I said earlier that we should not bring partisan politics into this matter.”
At this point, Senator Babafemi Ojudu raised a point of order and Senate President immediately reacted that, “All the points we are discussing are point of order and so you are not going to add anything extra. It is the point of order that we are still discussing.”
Then Senator Ojudu said: “Distinguished colleagues, Order 53 (7) and (8). Order 7 says it shall be out of order to use offensive and insulting language and Order 8 says no senator shall input improper motive to any other senator.
“Mr. President sir, we are discussing a very important issue, there is no single Nigerian, not to talk of a senator that is not concerned about the security of this country. All we are saying is that this money should be done properly in a manner that all of us can go out of here and defend.”
Mark immediately replied Ojudu. “Who has imputed improper motive, please distinguished colleagues, who have imputed improper motive here? I said so because I want to rule on it.”
Ojudu also replied: “I understand English sufficiently, sir.Mark: “I think all of us here do, so let’s not…., please. Ojudu, all of us here understand English, nobody is speaking any other language here. Make your point of order so that I can rule on it. Please, Ojudu, what the Deputy Senate President said is that we should not make this debate appear as if one party is supporting the fight against insurgency and the other party is not.”
The Senate President subsequently put the question and an overwhelming “ayes” approved the loan.
Meanwhile, Senate also confirmed the appointment of Justice Chima Centus Nweze as a Justice of the Supreme Court.
Chairman of the Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal Matters, Senator Umaru Dahiru in his report said that Justice Nweze has the exposure and experience.
THE SUN
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