Senate Moves To Amend CCB, ACJ Acts

Permanent Secretary Ministry of Water Resources, Mrs Rabi Jimeta (left), the Minister, Mr Suleiman Adamu (3rd right), French Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr Denys Gauer (right) and officials of French Development Agency (AFD), during their visit to the minister in Abuja, recently.

The Senate having resumed from two-week recess, yesterday, has moved to amend the Code of Conduct Bureau Act and that of Administration of Criminal Justice Act 2015, suggesting an effort towards killing the on-going trial of Senate President, Dr Bukola Saraki.
Rising from over an hour closed-door meeting, the Senate President announced at the commencement of yesterday’s plenary, that the Senate discussed on 2016 appropriation budget and the smooth operations of the National Assembly, which he put to vote.
“Is it a true reflection of the Senate that 2016 appropriation and the smooth running of the National Assembly were discussed at closed door session?”, he asked.
Though the proposed amendment of Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) and that of Administration of Criminal Justice Act 2015 did not reflect on the Order Papers that had six presentations of proposed bills, the Chief Whip, Senator Bala Ibn N’allah, while introducing the bill, stated that the two bills be considered for amendment, corroborated by Clerk to the Senate on the floor and was subsequently taken.
“Mr Senate President, a Bill for amendment of Code of Conduct Bureau and Administration of Criminal Justice Act 2015 be taken by the Senate,” N’allah said.
The implication of taking a proposed amendment of any bills means that they can start work any moment.
It would be recalled that the Senate President’s case is trapped within the ambit of Code of Conduct Bureau and Administration of Criminal Justice Act 2015, which was just passed into law by the 7th Senate.
However, Senator Matthew Urhoghide (PDP), irked by the trial of Saraki, in an interview with Judiciary Correspondents at the Code of Conduct Tribunal, vowed that the National Assembly would amend those Acts, which he described as fatal to Nigeria’s judicial system.
In a related development, the Senate Spokesman, Senator Sabi Abdullahi, yesterday in Abuja, affirms that the National Assembly would not take Nigerians for granted, therefore, attempts by the Presidency to water down the already passed budget will not be tolerated.
Addressing reporters after yesterday’s plenary, Abdullahi stressed that the statement, which was issued, Monday with regards to Buhari’s failure to assent to the bill, was not a confrontation, but to put things right in the interest of Nigerians, hence the expectation of the Senate was for the bill to be signed into law unconditionally.
“I want to make it very clear that the statement which was issued by the Senate on Monday was not a confrontation with Presidency, but to put things in its proper perspectives,” he noted.
Reacting to claims by the Minister of Transportation, Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi that the Senate expunged the Calabar–Lagos Rail project from 2016 budget, Abdullahi described the project as important and strategic, noting, that they were not ready to poke one another, while advising that if there were mistakes on the part of the Executive, they should accept it.
According to him, it remains that the only way out of the logjam was through supplementary budget rather than dissipating energy on the budget as it is now.
“There is nothing wrong for anybody to admit error and apologise and in this case, the Senate could not have removed the project if it was part of the proposed budget,” he maintained.