The Senate on Tuesday bowed to pressure and rejected the nomination of Lauretta Onochie, the personal assistant to President Muhammadu Buhari on new media.
Her nomination was rejected by the lawmakers during the consideration of the report of the Senate Committee on INEC led by Kabiru Gaya.
The Senate also stepped down the nomination of Sani Muhammad Adam (North-Central) for further investigation by the committee.
BusinessDay recalled that the committee had cleared Onochie and six other nominees on Thursday last week.
Those confirmed include: Abdullahi Abdu Zuru (North-West), Muhammad Sani Kallah (Katsina), Kunle Cornelius Ajayi (Ekiti), Baba Bila (North-East), and Saidu Babura Ahmad (Jigawa).
Read also: Senate rejects Lauretta Onochie as INEC commissioner
In his presentation, Chairman of the committee, Kabiru Gaya (APC, Kano South), said the committee received several petitions against the nominations of Ms. Lauretta Onochie and Professor Sani Muhammad Adam.
He disclosed that the petitions against Lauretta Onochie bothered on her involvement in politics and alleged membership of a political party.
Gaya explained that her nomination violated the Federal Character Principle as there was already a serving National Electoral Commissioner from Delta State, Barr. Mary Agbamuche-Mbu who was screened and confirmed by the 8th Senate.
“In the case of Ms. Lauretta Onochie’s, having studied her curriculum vitae and other relevant documents, followed by exhaustive interaction around the petitions against her nomination which she responded to accordingly, including attesting that she is not a registered member of any political party”, Gaya said.
According to the lawmaker, the committee bound by the provisions of Section 14(3) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as Amendment) on Federal Character Principle, refused to recommend Onochie for confirmation.
“Therefore, based on the provisions of Section 14(3) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as Amended) on Federal Character Principle as earlier stated, and in order for the Committee and the Senate to achieve fairness to other states and political zones in the country, the committee is unable to recommend Ms. Lauretta Onochie for confirmation as a National Electoral Commissioner for the Independent National Electoral Commission”, he explained.
On the nomination of Sani Muhammad Adam, the committee recommended that his confirmation be stepped down pending further legislative action by the committee.
Accordingly, the Senate while confirming the five nominees, adopted the recommendations of the Committee by rejecting Onochie’s nomination and stepping down that of Professor Adam for further action.
