The chairmanship of the 57 Standing Committees of the Senate may likely be shared equally among the ruling All Progressives Congress members and their counterparts in the opposition Peoples Democratic Party in September.
However, the Senate President, Bukola Saraki, will announce the list.
This is contrary to the recent assurance by the Senate spokesperson, Dino Melaye, during an interview with our correspondent in Abuja, when he said that APC senators would chair most of the committees.
But investigations by our correspondent on Monday revealed that the current face-off between the Presidency and the leadership of the Senate over the appointment of principal officers would make some perceived loyalists of some party chiefs lose out of the power game in the red chamber.
Already, Senate Leader, Ali Ndume, had confirmed in an interview with our correspondent that the standing committees, according to tradition, would be announced next month when members resume from their current long annual recess.
Traditionally, the Senate President and his deputy are automatic members of the Selection Committee, but some senators, who spoke with our correspondent on condition of anonymity on Monday, said the Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, might take full charge of the assignment.
At the moment, the Senate President had constituted four special committees, adhering strictly to the rule on geopolitical spread, with both the APC and the PDP senators sharing the chairmanship on equal basis.
The committees are Senate Services, headed by Ibrahim Gobir (APC, Sokoto East); Rules and Business, which has Babajide Omoworare (APC, Osun Central ) as chairman; Ethics and Privileges, chaired by Samuel Anyanwu ( PDP, Imo East ); and Public Accounts Committee, with Andy Uba (PDP, Anambra South) as chairman.
Saraki had also asked senators who might wish to serve in the Senate Standing Committees to pick forms from the Clerk to the Senate, and indicated five committees where they wish to serve as soon as possible.
A senator from the South-West geopolitical zone pointed out that the current plan by the leadership of the 8th Senate to adopt the provisions of the controversial amendments made to the Senate Rules in the allocation of committee chairmanship to senators was a grand design to favour the opposition.
He said the amendment was a drastic departure from the Senate tradition, regarding the allocation of more committee chairmanship to members of the majority party.
He noted that some APC senators might lose out in the process, and end up sharing the positions equally with the PDP members.
He said, “The controversial amendments made to the Senate Rules 2015 had made it mandatory for the leadership of the upper chamber to share headship of the committees equally among the six geopolitical zones.
“Specifically, Order 3 (4) of the Senate Standing Orders 2015, as amended, states that, ‘The appointment of senators as chairmen and members of committees shall be carried out in such a manner as to reflect the six geopolitical zones of the country and there shall be no predominance of senators from a few geo-political zones.”
