To advocates of democracy, the legislature serves the wish of the people and promotes good governance through checks and balances. But in this analysis, BIYI ADEGOROYE argues that the Nigerian Senate’s tendency to confirm every request of President Bola Tinubu, without thorough scrutiny and recourse to extant laws negate democratic principles

The N27.5 trillion budget presented to the joint session of the National Assembly last week for the 2024 fiscal year provides the lawmakers an auspicious opportunity to prove one point- that they have capacity and readiness to do their job, rather than being a rubber stamp. A budget of this magnitude goes beyond mere figures. It is a combination of policies, programmes and activities that are critical to the lives and livelihood of Nigerians, even for years to come. Prior to now, the 10th Senate in particular has provided those who believe that it is a mere rubber stamp, or at least less meticulous in the discharge of its constitutional duties, bases for such conclusion.

Daily, its actions point in that pejorative direction. Since its emergence in June, actions taken by the Upper Legislature, and the National Assembly as a whole possesses the trapping of an arm of government ready to approve any Executive request without thorough scrutiny. The intrinsic link between the legislature and the people stands it out as a vital constituent of modern democracy, the only arm of government which gives effective representations to the people. Besides lawmaking, in its oversight functions, it gives direction to policies and checks its plans, programmes and policies.

Democracy experts state that the Legislature as a representative assembly watches over and controls the Executive, acts as airs, eyes and voice of the people, giving full exposure, discussion and justification for government’s decisions and actions, such that decisions emanating therefrom become a collective one. By its share composition of 109 senators, the Senate undoubtedly is peopled by an array of senators from different professional, political backgrounds in various spheres of life. Hence, the Senate possesses the human resource and capacity for robust and exhaustive debates on national policies and programmes.

Besides, it has within its reach scores of consultants and experts across the country, but it has been observed that by the Upper Legislature’s recent hasty decisions and approvals, in a rabid desire to support the Executive, it might as well been staking people’s confidence in it. Without being antagonistic or constituting itself as an opposition arm within the government, it has been argued that the Legislature has the capacity to hold the Executive accountable by summoning heads of ministries, agencies and parastatals where necessary, ensuring their plans, programmes and budgets are inextricably tailored to meet the needs of the nation and in conformity with rule of law.

Confirmation of INEC Commissioners

One of such cases was the confirmation of resident electoral commissioners on the Independent Electoral Commission, (INEC). Early in November, President Bola Tinubu sent a list of 10 nominees to serve inn this capacity. The were Mr. Etekamba Umoren, (Akwa Ibom) Mr. Isah Shaka Ehimeakne (Edo) Mrs. Oluwatoyin Babalola, (Ekiti). Others were Mr. Abubakar Ahmed Ma’aji (Gombe), Mr. Shehu Wahab (Kwara), Dr. Bunmi Omoseyindemi (Lagos), Mr. Aminu Kasimu Idris, (Nasarawa), Prof. Mohammed Yelwa, (Niger), Dr. Anugbum Onuoha, (Rivers) and Mr. Isma’ila Kaura Moyi, (Zamfara).

Despite the petition by a coalition of 17 civil society groups asking Senate not to confirm Mr Umoren from Akwa Ibom State and Isah Ehimeakne from Edo State and Omoseyindemi for being loyalists of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), the Senate called their bluff and confirmed them. Lawyers said the action ran foul of the Third schedule of the 1999 Constitution, Section 14, 3(b) on the appointment of a partisan person into INEC, which states “There shall be for each State of the Federation and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, a Resident Electoral Commissioner who shall be a person of unquestionable integrity and shall not be a member of any political party.”

Umoren is said to be a member of the APC and a long-time ally of Senator Godswill Akpabio, who served as his Chief of Staff at the Akwa Ibom State Government House when Akpabio governed the state between 2007 and 2014. Similarly, Moseyindemi, was said to have been an ally of Mr Tinubu since 2001 when he served as chairman of the Lagos State Traditional Medicine Board until 2015, and the following year he was appointed an electoral commissioner in the Lagos Electoral Commission.

Confirmation of EFCC Chair

The confirmation of Ola Olukoyede as Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission(EFCC) also came under severe criticism. Lawyers and Civil society groups argued that he lacked qualifications and failed to meet the requirement of law setting up the commission. Adebayo Ogorry, head of some CSO, asked the Akpabio-led Senate not to confirm Olukoyede, noting that President Tinubu, in appointing the new EFCC boss, failed to obey the extant laws guiding the appointment of EFCC chairman. In a letter to the National Assembly, Ogorry said, “We write to draw the attention of the Senate to the gross violation of the extant laws, which is the Establishment Act 2004 of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, by the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, President Bola Tinubu in appointing Mr Ola Olukoyede as Chairman of the Commission on Thursday, October 12, 2023.

“The action of Tinubu in making the appointment of Mr Olukoyede into such a high office with enormous responsibility as the chairman of the EFCC in flagrant breach of the provisions of the laws of the parliament is contrary to the oath he took on May 29, 2023, to protect and defend the laws of the nation. “It is important to note that the EFCC Extant laws remain sacrosanct and need to be strictly adhered to before going ahead to appoint a chairman for the Commission. President Tinubu as the number one citizen, whose office is the creation of the law, needs to comply with the EFCC Extant Laws and not be seen to set a wrong precedenc for successive administrations in making his appointment, which can slip the country into a state of anarchy.”

The group the EFCC Establishment Act, 2004 which says, (1) The Commission shall consist of the following members-(a)A chairman, who shall- (i) be the Chief Executive and Accounting officer of the Commission, (ii) be a serving or retired member of any government security or law enforcement agency not below the rank of Assistant Commissioner of Police or equivalent; and (iii) Possess not less than 15 years cognate experience. “This section simply means that not all members of the police force, other Forces and indeed the EFCC can be the Executive Chairman of the EFCC. A pilot, medical personnel, Admin officer, etc who have 15 years of police or paramilitary service, are ordinarily devoid of the cognate experience of enforcing the laws of the EFCC.

“This much is gleaned from Section 8 (5) of the EFCC Act which states that: “All officers involved in the enforcement of the Act shall have the same powers, authorities, privileges (including power to bear arms) as are given by law to members of the Nigerian Police,” Ogorry added. The EFCC chairman was a member of the Fraud Advisory Panel, United Kingdom. He is also a lawyer with over 22 years of experience as a regulatory compliance consultant and specialist in fraud management and corporate intelligence. At the EFCC, Olukoyede previously served as the Chief of Staff to the former acting Chairman, Ibrahim Magu; and later served as the Secretary of the anti-graft agency.

He is also a member of the Federal Government Technical Committee on the Repositioning of the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit. Also, Daniel Bwala, Abuja based lawyer and member of the Peoples Democratic Party, described the appointment as “unlawful and illegal…It runs foul of the provisions of Section 2 of the EFCC Act” Bwala, said the Act provides that the person to be appointed as EFCC Chairman must amongst other things have been “a serving or retired member of any security or law enforcement agency, have 15 years cognate experience of law enforcement, and must not be below the rank of assistant commissioner of police Bwala however noted that “Olukayode is a private legal practitioner and has never worked or belonged to any security or law enforcement agency as a member.

He Olukoyede also does not have 15 years cognate experience as a law enforcement officer, even as he stated that the private legal practice years cannot be equated to the rank in law enforcement. But Olukayode has since resumed office.

Confirmation of NDDC Directors

Earlier this year, the National Assembly also confirmed then President Muhammadu Buhari’s nomination into the board of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), despite the various objections raised in writing by many Nigerians that the appointment ran foul of the NDDC Act. Besides, spirited cries by all three senators then representing Ondo State in the last Senate, Ajayi Borofice, Ayo Akinyelure and Nicholas Tofowomo, fell on deaf ears. The board has since been inaugurated and has commenced work. Other actions of the National Assembly which have drawn the ire of the public include the speed with which it granted this government’s loan request and his supplementary budget which has been described as a reflection of the government’s insensitivity to the needs of Nigerians at this critical moment.

Senator Tofowomo, in a chat with Sunday Telegraph, said the development is appalling. “The National Assembly should not turn itself into an errant boy, rather as representatives of the people, it must do its job. More importantly, it is shocking and ridiculous that the National Assembly, the parliament, violates its own law.” One time presidential candidate of the National Conscience Party, Chief Martins Onovo, viewed the development as very sad. “The question is how did we get here? The last National Assembly was a rubber stamp, but the current one is slavish and subservient to the Executive.” He said this democracy has failed the two elements of constitutional democracy, namely rule law and integrity of the ballot. To worsen matters, the Legislature has failed in its duties.

“The evidence is out there and everybody knows. Even the Supreme Court, the custodian of law and order, has violated the Constitution on many counts. The ruling party has conquered the legislature and the judiciary. You remember when the Nigerian Bar Association raised the alarm years ago about intimidation of the judiciary? That was designed to subjugate it and that is what we are seeing today.”