Obasanjo Apologises, Moves to Calm Angry Senators
Senate Vs El-Rufai
From Kola Ologbondiyan in Abuja
President Olusegun Obasanjo yesterday moved to stave what could have been a fresh crisis between the executive and legislative arms of government at the federal level when he apologised to the Senate on behalf of the Minister of Federal Capital Territory, Mallam Nasir el-Rufai.
El-Rufai had been quoted as describing Senators as fools in a reaction to the order by the legislative body on him to refund salaries paid to his special assistants whose appointments the Senate had said did not follow the civil service procedures.
Before the President's apology, the Senate yesterday in a unanimous decision requested Obasanjo to relieve the minister of his position within the next 48 hours.
The President in a letter, which was dated August 13, 2004, reads, "On noticing the alleged wrong deployment of language of the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory on a member or members of the Senate of the Federal Republic, I asked the Honourable Minister to give me an explanation in writing.
"I note with some concern the Minister's explanation which seemed to touch on action and reaction between a Distinguished Senator and the Honourable Minister.
"But be that as it may, I have cautioned the Minister on the use of language in public about any member of the Federal Legislature no matter how seemingly provoked.
"Everything should be done to maintain the very cordial and amicable relationship now existing between the Executive and the Legislature. Therefore, if any offence has been caused, I apologise on behalf of the Minister and I hope that words amounting to alleged threat or blackmail will cease to emanate from Distinguished and Honourable members of the National Assembly."
Obasanjo is also said to have held several meetings with different caucuses yesterday night and early this morning to assuage the feeling of the Senators.
The Senate had during yesterday's session suspended plenary session immediately the decision was taken and resolved to reconvene at the expiration of the 48-hours to consider the response or reaction of Obasanjo to the resolution. The legislators decision was to protest a statement in national newspapers quoting el-Rufai as describing Senators as "fools".
The resolution of the Senate to demand el-Rufai's removal was predicated upon a motion initiated by Senator David Brigidi (PDP, Bayelsa) via Orders 14, 15 and 18 of the Senate Rules inviting the attention of the Senate to the statement credited to the Minister in the Friday, August 27 edition of a national newspaper captioned "El-Rufai to Senate: Silence is the best answer for a fool."
Asserting that the statement contained in the publication breached his privileges and those of senators individually and collectively, Brigidi argued that the Senate received the report of the Committee on Public Accounts and accepted the recommendation that el-Rufai's employment and payment of over N9m as salary to two special assistants are irregular.
He said the Senate also approved the committee's recommendation that the accounting officer of the Federal Capital Territory Ministry to recover all money irregularly paid to the two special assistants of the Minister and submit treasury receipts to that effect to the Auditor General of the Federation.
According to him, el-Rufai, in reacting to this decision of the Senate, "was quoted in almost all the national dailies when asked of his reaction to the issue of refund as saying that 'silence is the best answer for a fool.
"He referred to all senators as fools. This is an unprovoked attack on the Senate that has been making laws for the good governance of this country; has worked tirelessly to ensure that democracy survives in this country. It (breach of privilege) goes beyond me to the entire Senate. Having waited throughout the weekend for a possible retraction and seeing none in the national dailies, I move that the Senate..."
Senate President Adolphus Wabara, however, sought a clarification from Brigidi that "before you move, did he say silence is the best answer for fools or a fool," and Brigidi, who is the chairman of the Senate Committee on INEC, (Independent National Electoral Commission) responded, "for a fool."
Wabara further asked if the statement was directed to one person or many people and Brigidi quickly responded, "A fool in that context is a collective noun. It is referring to the Senate as an entity." Then the Senate President asked, "including myself?" and the senators responded in a loud voice, "Yes!"
Brigidi then moved that, "Whereas the Senate rules do confer certain privileges on senators and also protect these privileges, I consider it necessary to move that having been clearly identified by the publication that el-Rufai has breached these privileges, that the Senate do request the President, Commander-in-Chief of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to relieve Mallam Nasir el-Rufai of his position as a Minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria within 48 hours.
"I also move that the Senate do reconvene in a Plenary Session at the expiration of 48 hours to consider the response or reaction of Mr. President, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to the Senate resolution."
The chairman of the Senate Committee on National Security and Intelligence, Senator Nuhu Aliyu (PDP, Niger), in seconding the motion, said "there is no doubt that the Senate has been patient with el-Rufai because the minister has always found words to describe the Senate. The other day, he said he was not answerable to us. Before then, he was cheeky about the Senate. We have been very patient and we can't stand his arrogance any longer. The President should remove the minister within the next 48 hours."
Wabara then asked if the Senate had made any contact with el-Rufai and the floor thundered "No! No!"
Brigidi who was recognised maintained that "there was no basis for any contact. We are aware that the chairman of the greatest party in Africa, (PDP national chairman, Chief Audu Ogbeh) is aware and we notified him and he visited him (el-Rufai) yet up till now he (Minister) has not retracted the statement."
Senator Abubakar Sodangi (PDP, Nasarawa), the Senate Committee on Internal Affairs chairman, said, "I'm in total support of the motion and in addition I have an amendment that we suspend all proceedings and await further reaction of Mr. President. I've a text message on my phone (raising his mobile phone up) from a colleague in the United States of America (USA) and in that text message he said 'even if the Senate is an illiterate institution, we should not stand a serving minister calling us all a fool.'
"This is a minister that has been doing all sorts of illegal things that we have been condoning," Sodangi added.
Wabara then asked if it was "the wish of the Senate that we adjourn immediately," and got a resounding "yes." He, however, allowed debate to continue as he recognised the Senate Committee on Defence Chairman, Senator Fidelis Okoro, who noted that, "The minister has insulted the entire Nigeria. I want Brigidi to allow his motion to be amended to read 24 hours and unless he (el-Rufai) is sacked, we should not resume sitting."
As Okoro drew the conclusion to his presentation, the Senate Leader, Senator Dalhatu Tafida, walked the floor across to the chair to consult with Wabara.
The Senate President then recognised Senator Idris Kuta (PDP, Niger), who in expressing support for the motion, noted, "The minister is from the Leader's senatorial zone. I saw him (Leader) going to the chair (Wabara) and I felt that he was coming to plead with you but I hope not. El-Rufai has the feet to do what he is doing because when he came for screening, he swore by the Holy Quoran and later lied under oath. He should have been arraigned for perjury. On his headship of the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE), we directed that privatisation proceeds be investigated and up till today the report of that investigation has not come back to the Senate. It is not only the Senate that he has taken to task. An individual that demolishes churches and mosques and is now going out to demolish the Senate has a question to ask himself.
"I think there should be no hurry to demolish NLC (Nigeria Labour Congress), we should demolish the Minister first. We must put all other actions aside because the PDP chairman told us that he has contacted him last Saturday that he should stop insulting the legislature but it appears that he is not ready. The 48 hours is enough. But what the Public Account Committee did was right by asking him to refund the money he paid illegally to his aides. We should also revisit the FCT Decree which was an instrument of military rule that granted all the FCT Ministers all manners of powers."
Wabara, however, expressed reservations in accepting Sodangi's amendment "for the simple reason that in my considered opinion, I believe that if we close down the Senate until we hear from Mr. President, we would make el-Rufai a great man." He however received another loud "No! No! response.
The Senate President then said, "We have agreed to go on strike because of el-Rufai when we know that if Mr. President does not comply, there are other things that could be done and those who elected us here would ask questions."
Senators once again shouted No! No! No!
Senator Kanti Bello (ANPP, Katsina), who took the floor, said: "When I graduated and had worked to Level 14, el-Rufai has a professor here who was his lecturer. He should respect us and understand that we are the legislators for FCT. It is my view that though it may not be good to abandon our job, but we should give President Obasanjo 24 hours to sack him and we would not discuss any executive bills until this is done. If he (Obasanjo) likes, let him make el-Rufai a minister in his (Obasanjo's) house but not of the Federal Republic of Nigeria."
Senator Muktar Aruwa (ANPP, Kaduna), in his contribution, noted that "much as el-Rufai represents my state, truth is one and indivisible. It is true that the Senate has endured a lot of vitriolic utterances but what he said last week was awful. I also received a call from the United States of America on what el-Rufai said about the Senate.
"I support the need to call el-Rufai to order totally. Our leaving the chamber is not a walkout but to show how we feel and how quickly we want the President to take action," Aruwa said.
Senator Patrick Osakwe (PDP, Delta) however stated that "the Senate as an institution has been rubbished enough by this minister. His cup is full and delay is dangerous. This is an institution that passed you at the screening without turning you back and you got in there and start bashing that institution."
The Senate President then told his colleagues that "I've been instructed to put the question" and once again they replied "yes!" Before that he (Wabara) recalled a parable from a book he read while in school.
According to Wabara, "When in school, we read a book entitled School for Scandal. That book says the pity is that the wise did not know he is foolish but the foolish knows that he is wise."
However, before the Senate President put the question to the floor, Kuta moved that, "before we are caught in the web, the Votes and Proceedings of this sitting should be prepared and we return at 2.00pm to approve same" and this was carried.
The Senate President then put the questions that were carried without a dissent.
Before the Senate reconvened to approve the Votes and Proceedings, the Special Adviser to the President on National Assembly Matters, Senator Florence Ita-Giwa, had delivered Obasanjo's letter of apology to Wabara.
Earlier, Ogbeh, the PDP's Acting Board of Trustees chairman, Chief Tony Anenih as well as Ita-Giwa had met the PDP caucus of the Senate in Hearing Room 1 before the 10.00am sitting.
Although Ogbeh told newsmen that "we came to chat with senators on some bills and some issues," THISDAY, however, learnt that one of the issues tabled was the el-Rufai matter.
Meanwhile Deputy Majority Leader of the Senate, Senator Jonathan Zwingina, yesterday dispelled insinuations that the Senate has embarked on strike as part of efforts to fight el-Rufai.
"We are not on strike. What we have done is to give an ultimatum to President Olusegun Obasanjo and wait for his actions. We have not suspended all legislative works because the committees are still sitting and I'm going for a committee meeting right away," Zwingina said.
According to him, "the motion (brought by Senator David Brigidi) said plenary should wait till we hear from Obasanjo. Legislators never go on strike," he added assuring that "the President will not ignore the resolutions of the Senate."
Asked if el-Rufai's fate is not connected to his allegation that two principal officers demanded bribe from him before he was cleared as minister, Zwingina said. "I would say that is not the case because the fact speaks for itself. He made that comment and he has made several others.
"We should not impute what has been settled. Nowhere in the world where you have allegation without proof and people would publish. He has opportunity to retract but he refused to do that.
"The facts speak for themselves. Did the Senate attack him before he called the Senate a fool on the basis of a legitimate report that pointed to misapplication of N20m which the EFCC (Economic and Financial Crimes Commission) or Anti-Corruption should be looking at.
"We cleared the Minister based on the fact available that time but we have since learned our lessons including the minister. I believe in the future, the Minister would be circumspect in the way he describes political institutions," Zwingina said.
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