The highpoint of the ministerial screening as at Thursday for your correspondent was the point Senator Uche Ekwunife rose to address the nominee from Nassarwa State.

Nigerian Senate

Without regards to her husband’s sensibilities, Mrs. Ekwunife brought a romantic flair to the farce that the 9th Senate has dubbed as ministerial screening.

Looking at the nominee, Barrister Abdullahi Hassan, Senator Ekwunife said: “Looking at you, a handsome young guy from Nasarawa State…assuming Mr. President decides to think out of the box and puts you there as the Minister of Women Affairs, what would you do to ensure that more women are in elective and appointive positions?”

Hassan indeed had to think out of the box to respond to perhaps one of the most outlandish questions that have surfaced at the screening.

The Nigerian Senate had in the past been criticized for its praise-singing of ministerial nominees.

However, no one expected that the praise-singing would turn to adoration under the most cerebral Senate President to have conducted a regular ministerial screening.

Senator Ahmad Lawan, Ph.D., to some extent tried to curtail the feverish worship many of his colleagues brought to bear in the screening, but traditions die hard.

Following the introduction of the Nasarawa nominee, Senators Abdullahi Adamu and Tanko al-Makura, both former governors of Nasarawa State rose up to praise the nominee who they both claimed worked under them as governors of the state.

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They both sought for the man to bow and go in deference to what they claimed as his capacity. What a cheek!

It was nice that Senator Lawan did not pander to that request otherwise Senator Ekwunife’s romantic bent would not have manifested.

It was, however, a different tune for Mr. Sunday Dare, the nominee from Oyo State.

Though his senators idolized his capacities as a journalist, democracy activist and telecommunication regulator, Senator Teslim Folarin was bold enough to present him for rigorous interrogation on the claim that Dare was capable of answering all questions.

Indeed, Mr. Dare did not fail as he rose to the occasion and brought technical lucidity to many issues that were brought before him.

It is a shame that some senators will try to hide the capacity of their own nominees while Oyo is bold enough to open her nominee to interrogation.

It is not as if the “Fine Guy” from Nasarawa was anywhere deficient in his capacity, but the problem is the patronising stance of the senators.

Even nominees with known corruption cases being asked to bow and go! At least one of the nominees who is on the United States visa ban was also asked to bow and go!

Mr. Dare by his elucidation may have impressed many, but the Nigerian Senate collectively failed to rise to the occasion.

Mr. Dare was screened on a day two very important issues in the telecommunications industry came to the fore.

On Thursday, two of the biggest telecommunication carriers, MTN and Glo cut of connection between them and it is puzzling that no senator was able to bring up the issue on a day the telecommunication regulator was screened.

It has also come to light that the erstwhile executive vice-chairman of the National Communications Commission, NCC, Mr. Ernest Ndukwe had been appointed as chairman of the board of MTN.

The question of a former regulator or referee taking a stake in an operator after stepping down from regulation is an ethical question that should have interested our lawmakers.

It should have been an opportunity for the issue to be raised, but the Senate fixated on adoring the players that they are to superintend over, simply lacked the guts.

There is little doubt that the present screening or rather smooching is about the most bizarre in the history of the Fourth Republic.

The matter is made worse by the continued refusal of the president to attach portfolios to the nominees. That is despite a resolution of the 8th Senate that portfolios should be attached to nominations.

When it suits the Nigerian Senate, it likes to refer to legislatures in other jurisdictions. It would behoove those who take this path to take another look at the confirmation hearings in the United States Senate.

Ministerial nominations: Fashola, Mamora, well deserved- APC stalwart(Opens in a new browser tab)

Who will forget the emotive confirmation hearing of Senator Hilary Clinton, who as a serving senator and a wife of a former president was rigorously screened for her to earn her position as Secretary of State.

The irony in the farce or smooching that is presented as a screening by the Nigerian Senate is the fact that after assuming office as minister, that these nominees will begin to look down on the senators. Your correspondent will not forget a time he was walking with a senator and a minister’s entourage came along and shoved everyone out of the way including the senator!

Indeed, what better accounts for a minister defying the Senate than this enthronement of praise-singing as a confirmation hearing. It is ridiculous and enthrones incompetence in governance! It devalues us as a country and takes us to the lower level!

Vanguard