Magu: Presidency should lobby NASS – Experts
A Political Scientist , Prof. Femi Otubanjo and a Lawyer , Mr Onyekachi Ubani , on Wednesday urged President Muhammadu Buhari to cooperate with the Senate to avoid delay in the operations of government .
“ The partnership between these arms of government is essential for smooth running of government and for the people to enjoy the dividends of democracy , ’’ they said .
They reacted to the senate’s non - consideration of a letter from the Presidency requesting legislature ’s approval for the nomination of 27 Resident Electoral Commissioners for the Independent National Electoral Commission .
The Deputy President of the Senate , Sen . Ike Ekweremadu , however , had urged the lawmakers to suspend the consideration of the request for two weeks , noting that the time was enough to send a signal to the Executive arm.
The senators also insisted that the process be abandoned until Magu is removed as the Acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission .
The upper chamber of the National Assembly had on March 15 , rejected for the second time , Magu ’s nomination based on a report on him by the DSS.
Otubanjo , a Professor of Political Science at the National Open University of Nigeria , blamed the executive arm for the crisis , saying they refused to engage the senate via lobbying .
According to Otubanjo , the executive arm must see the legislature as partners in progress and not a people to be ignored or quarrelled with .
He said , “ We saw what happened with Trump when he was trying to repeal Obamacare . He addressed the parliament and even invited some of the leaders to a breakfast table .
“ Since this administration , we have never seen the president go to the Senate to address them or even engage them in any way .
“ The reality is that the presidency and the executive must learn to lobby and not take things for granted or standing up to the Senate .
“ The Senate must be managed carefully and respected . It is not automatic that Senate must confirm any nomination.
“ Therefore, this Magu matter must be terminated since the senate has rejected him twice . If the presidency wants to nominate him a third time , they (Presidency) should lobby the senate. ”
Otubanjo also urged the Senate to be more dignified in its reactions and statements to avoid causing tension in the polity .
Also , Ubani urged the presidency and the executive to play politics, lobby and to cooperate with each other to avoid delay in the operations of government and move the country forward .
“ The same executive who nominated Magu sent a letter to the senate through the DSS, saying Magu has integrity issues .
“ The presidency or the executive did not lobby the Senate in any way for Magu ’s confirmation.
“ All these were mistakes on the part of the executive, and the Senators are angry because Magu is being left on acting capacity without their confirmation.
“ It is obvious that the Senate will never confirm Magu because the man is after some of the Senators who are involved in corrupt issues .
“ The Presidency needs to understand the dynamics of politics and not quarrel with the Senate at the detriment of the campaign promises made to Nigerians who voted for the president .
“ The practical thing to do now is to drop Magu , get another person with competence , character and efficiency to fight corruption and send his name quickly for confirmation.
“ No acting like in the case of Magu because putting him on an acting capacity for too long before sending his name for confirmation was a mistake.
“ The presidency needs to cooperate so that the Senate will not continue to withhold approval for other nominations or bills such as the 2017 budget ,’’ he said .
( NAN )
©blazeworld'17
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