House of Representatives, Thursday, unveiled 134 Standing Committees for its oversight functions and other legislative activities for the 10th national assembly. Speaker of the House, Hon. Tajudeen Abbas who announced the committees also named the Chairmen and their deputies.

Some of the Chairmen and their portfolios included Hon. Benjamin Kalu, the deputy speaker (Abia)-Constitution Review Committee; Hon. Abubakar Bichi (Kano)-Appropriations; Hon. Muhammed Elrufai (Kaduna)-Banking Regulations; Hon. Bamidele Salam (Osun)- Public Account; Hon. Ikenga Ikeagwuonu Ugochinyere (Imo)- Petroleum Resources (Downstream) Hon. Henry Okojie (Edo)- Petroleum Midstream; Hon. Victor Ogene (Anambra)- Renewable Energy; Hon. Amos Dunia- House services; Hon. Ibori Swenu (Delta) NDDC; Hon. Babajimi Benson (Lagos)-Defence; Hon. Hassan Fulata (Jigawa)-University Education and Hon. James Falake (Lagos)- Finance; Akin Alabi (Oyo) Media; Ginger Onwusibe (Abia)-Financial Crimes.

Others were Muktar Aliyu Betara (Borno)- FCT; Hon. Boma Goodhead (Rivers) Local Content; Hon. Wole Oke ( Osun) Judiciary; Hon. Ahmed Wase ( Plateau)- Federal Character; Hon. Abdulmumuni Jibrin (Kano)- Foreign Affairs; Hon Akin Alabi (Oyo)-Works; Hon. Leke Abejide (Kogi)-Custome and Excise; Hon. Yusuf Gagdi-(Plateau)-Navy; Hon. Ado dogwa (Kano)-Petroleum Up -Stream and Hon. Peter Akpatason (Edo)- Aviation.

In his remarks, Abbas said there were no grade ‘A’ or juicy committees. He added that the status of every chairman was equal, warning that they must carry all the members of the committee along. He said: “My dear Colleagues, you would recall that the leadership of the House has consistently assured members of its resolve to be fair to all, irrespective of political leanings and affiliations. There are no grade ‘A’ nor the so-called ‘juicy committees’ as some erroneously often think. Every committee of the House enjoys equal status, powers, and privileges as mere working groups to discharge the mandate given to us by our constituents.

“The committee system, aptly described as little legislatures by Woodrow Wilson, plays a crucial role in legislative bodies worldwide. Indeed, it serves as the fulcrum of the Legislature due to its central role in performing the bulk of legislative responsibilities and tasks. This system involves dividing the Legislature into smaller component units or working groups, which aims to enhance efficiency, improve productivity, facilitate legislative oversight of other branches of government, promote citizens’ participation in legislation, and enable detailed scrutiny of legislative instruments such as Bills and Motions.

“Let me state unequivocally that all members of Committees have equal status and must be carried along as such. Committee Chairmen are only administrative heads who must ensure the involvement of every member in the activities of Committees. The principle of teamwork should guide our engagements in these committees.

“Committee Chairmen must ensure that there are functional secretariats for their respective committees. This is very crucial as the House is redefining legislative work at the Committees. All Committees are now required to submit regular reports of their activities to the leadership of the House on a quarterly basis. Investigative hearings, public hearings, and reports from oversight functions have to be submitted to the House in plenary for further legislative action. Accordingly, the Committees should draw up their work plans and submit same to the Leadership of the House.”

Giving the appointees charge, Abbas asked them to be diligent and transparent in the discharge of their duties.

Eleven states of the federation will have to wait as President Bola Tinubu forwarded a list of 28 ministerial nominees through his Chief of Staff, Femi Gbajabiamila to the Senate for screening and confirmation, yesterday.

The states that have to wait are Adamawa, Bayelsa, Gombe, Kano, Kebbi, Kogi, Plateau, Lagos, Osun, Yobe, and Zamfara.

Tinubu’s ministerial list is dominated by former governors, ex-senators, House of Representatives members and strong political allies believed to have worked for his victory at the polls.

The number of names sent was 28, with no state of origin attached and with a promise that more names would follow soon, as Adamawa, Kogi, Lagos, Anambra and Bayelsa states are missing from the list.

On the list is the current acting National Chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, and Senator Abubakar Kyari, who represented Borno North in the 8th and 9th Senate.

Also on the list is Senator John Enoh, who represented Cross River Central in the 8th Senate, and Senator Abubakar Sani Danladi who was former acting governor and deputy governor of Taraba State.

However, Danladi was impeached by Taraba State House of Assembly on September 4, 2012, and replaced by Alhaji Umar Garba as deputy governor, who later became the acting governor of the state after the air crash that claimed the life of former Danbaba Suntai.

 On the list are former Deputy Chief Whip of the House of Representatives, Nkiru Onyejiocha, who represented Isuikwuato/ Umunneochi federal constituency, Abia State; Olubunmi Tunji Ojo, who represented Akoko North East/ North West federal constituency, Ondo State.

He was the chairman House Committee on Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC; Abubakar Momoh, a two-time member of the House of Representatives who represented Etsako federal constituency, Edo State, and Ekperikpe Ekpo, who represented Abak federal constituency from 2007 and 2011 from Akwa Ibom State.

A former All Progressives Congress, APC, presidential aspirant, Barrister Uju Kennedy Ohaneye, made the list.

Former Executive Director, NEXIM Bank, Stella Okotete, from Delta State, and the Special Adviser to the President on Communication, Strategy and Special Duties, Dele Alake, from Ekiti State also made the list.

Alake is a close ally of President Tinubu. Former Commissioner in Lagos, Wale Edu, from Ogun

A surprise package on the ministerial list is the Publisher of Blue Print Newspapers, Mohammed Idris, from Niger State.

One of the lead counsels in Tinubu’s case at the election petition tribunal, Lateef Fagbemi, from Kwara State, and Accord Party’s governorship candidate in Oyo State, Waheed Adebayo Adelabu, also made the list.

Also on the list is Professor Joseph Utsev, a very close ally of the Secretary to Government of the Federation, SGF, Senator George Akume, and the Rector, of Federal Polytechnic, Wannune, Akume’s hometown in Tarka Local Government Area of Benue State.

Meanwhile, the Senate has suspended its annual long recess that would have commenced yesterday to begin the screening of the ministerial nominees next Monday.

The immediate past National Vice Chairman, Northwest, of the ruling All Progressives Congress APC, Salihu Lukman, who resigned on Wednesday in protest against the recent turn of events in the party, said yesterday that the imposition of the former governor of Kano State, Dr Abdullahi Ganduje, as national chairman would lead the party to damnation.

Although Lukman resigned on Wednesday, his resignation has not been accepted by his colleagues in the National Working Committee, NWC.

“Perhaps, it is important to clarify that this is not in any way questioning the authority of President Bola Tinubu as the moral leader of the party. Being the moral leader of the party doesn’t give him the power of exercising statutory functions of organs of the party or unilaterally changing provisions of the party’s constitution.

”It will amount to setting President Tinubu for failure in the worse possible way to proceed to encourage him to act in a manner that is illegal and immoral.

”If the scheming to have Dr. Ganduje emerge as the next national chairman of APC succeeds with all the legal and moral questions, as a party, we would have set the stage for the destruction of our party and God forbids, we would have laid the foundation that will make President Tinubu and all our elected representatives unpopular,” he stated.

In an “explanatory note” sequel to his resignation, Lukman said he was tired of fighting for reforms in the APC. While he conceded that President Bola Tinubu remained the leader and moral compass of the party, Lukman, however, cautioned him against submitting to the temptation of becoming a champion of illegality and repression.

He said:  “Painful as it is, I want to appeal to President Bola Tinubu and all our leaders to resist the temptations that would protect our party and our leaders as champions of illegality and repression.”