Obasanjo Dissatisfied with Oyofo's Removal as Senate Whip
From Kola Ologbondiyan in Abuja
There were indications yesterday that President Olusegun Obasanjo Monday night expressed dissatisfaction over the sacking of Senator Victor Kashim Oyofo, as the Senate Majority Chief Whip.
Oyofo's successor, Senator Udoma Udo Udoma (PDP, Akwa Ibom), was, however, yesterday ushered to the seat of the Senate Majority Chief Whip by all the seanators from the South-south present during the session.
A principal officer of the Senate, who revealed the position of the president on the removal of Oyofo, explained that the leadership of the upper chamber met with the President "till about 3.00am on Monday night."
According to the source, "the position of the President on that matter is not easily achievable because a decision of the whole Senate on an issue is not just something that the leadership would just change like that."
"We are not unaware of the fact that we derive our powers from the floor of the Senate. It is therefore almost impossible for us (leadership) to override a decision of the Senate like that without doing some homework on how to achieve it," he said.
THISDAY, however, gathered that Senate President Adolphus Wabara went for another round of meeting at the Presidential Villa after the close of the session at about 4.00pm yesterday.
Meanwhile, all the South-south senators, who were in the Senate yesterday, led Udoma to his seat at about 10.42am.
Udoma had arrived the chamber around 10.39am when the Senate had commenced session and met the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Appropriation and Finance, Senator John Azuta-Mbata, waiting for him at the foot of the chamber.
Azuta-Mbata then signalled to some South-south senators who were sitting at the left flank of the entrance and they began to file out towards the position Udoma and Azuta-Mbata were standing.
Wabara, on noticing the movement of the senators, asked if the South-south were holding another meeting and almost immediately Udoma started moving to his seat shaking hands with his colleagues who sat close to the aisle and was trailed by the South-south senators.
Among the senators in his trail were Lee Maeba (PDP, Rivers); Azuta-Mbata (PDP, Rivers); Ibiapuye Martyns-Yellowe (PDP, Rivers); David Brigidi (PDP, Bayelsa); John K. Brambaifa (PDP, Bayelsa); Ewa Henshaw (PDP, Cross River); Victor Ndoma-Egba (PDP, Cross River); Effiong Bob (PDP, Akwa Ibom); James Manager (PDP, Delta); and Patrick Osakwe (PDP, Delta).
When Udoma had taken his seat, Wabara then remarked that, "it appears Senator Udoma didn't know where to sit and the South-south senators had to help him," But Brigidi responded that "we just wanted to be sure that he (Udoma) took his rightful seat".
Also, chairman of the Senate Committee on Intelligence and National Security, Senator Nuhu Aliyu, asked "where is Senator Victor Oyofo?"
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