2nd October, 2015
Eromosele Ebhomele
The Lagos State House of Assembly on Friday said it has a cordial relationship with the state governor, Akinwunmi Ambode, but maintained that such cordiality would not influence it from carrying out strict screening of the governor’s nominees for his cabinet.
The House spoke through its Deputy Speaker, Wasiu Eshilokun-Sanni, at a press conference to further explain the decision of the House to first screen the nominees before they are further screened by the general House.
Eshilokun-Sanni, who ceaselessly maintained that the House had no rift with Ambode over the method it had adopted to screen the members, further denied knowledge of any specific date fixed by the governor for the swearing in of the cabinet members.
The Deputy Speaker listed the requirements to be checked by the committee to include authentic certificates including originals of such certificates. He added that the certificates would be verified by the Directorate of State Security Service, DSS.
Other requirements include that the nominee must belong to a political party and there must be “proof of this through a letter from the state chairman and respective chairman of the local government chapter of the nominee.
“Concurrence of honourable members representing the nominee’s local government, as well as certificate of fitness from any Lagos State Government general hospital.”
A statement from the executive had stated that the nominees would have been confirmed before 5 October so they would be sworn into office.
The House had set up the committee and thereafter adjourned the sitting to 13 October giving insinuation of a rift with the executive arm.
But Eshilokun-Sanni denied knowledge of such date as allegedly fixed by the executive arm adding that the decision of the House to set up the committee was constitutional.
He explained that it was meant to do a thorough screening of the nominees to avoid embarrassing them before the general House in the case of any anomaly in their certificates.
He however said that the screening of the commissioners would not be public as it would only be covered by the information unit of the House.
The Deputy Speaker quoted Section 103(1) of the constitution as stating that “a House of Assembly may appoint a committee of its members for any special or general purpose as its opinions will be better regulated and managed by means of such a committee, and may by resolution, regulation or otherwise as it thinks fit, delegate any functions exercisable by it to any such committee.”
He also said the committee would focus on Section 192(4) of the constitution provides that nobody shall be appointed as a Commissioner of the state government unless he is qualified for election as a member of the House of Assembly.
“The reason for the screening is for proper job…We want to check the certificates of the nominees rather than embarrassing them on the floor of the House,” he said adding that if there was a rift, the House would not have passed the budget re-ordering.
Eshinlokun-Sanni said further that any nominee that is found to have presented fake certificate would be automatically disqualified because it would not be business as usual.
Meanwhile, ahead of the screening that is to commence on 5 October, the nominees have commenced submission of 50 copies each of their certificates and other requirements for the exercise.