Date Published: 03/27/10

Sir,

Ministerial Nominees: Before Senate passes all

With a Senate that has just been quoted front page of Guardian newspaper edition of 24/03/10 in the sense that “those even indicted persons would be allowed to contest elections”, what do you expect from such a house when it comes to clearing all the ministerial nominees of the acting President? This is not about electing but appointing (a lesser evil).

This is why people like Ndanusa Alao, the immediate past Managing Director of New Nigerian Newspapers, would scale through the screening.  I gather that some staffers of the Newspaper Company are planning to demonstrate against the insensitivity or should one say ignorance of the acting President who did nominate him.

Mr. Alao, it would be recalled, was relieved of his appointment when the staffers of the New Nigerian Newspapers went for a week-long strike aimed at drawing the attention of the northern state governors to the allegations that Alao had been high-handed and corrupt in running the affairs of the (almost) comatose Company. The northern governors had acceded to their request to investigate the tenure of the ministerial nominee but many people were taken aback as to why the acting President Jonathan had to go ahead nominating such a person; implying that there could be others unworthily nominated.

Though many people considered how busy the President is and may not have taken note of the situation that led to Alao’s exist from the publishing company; but his Personal Assistants should have drawn his attention, some argue. The ball is now in the court of the Senate to pass (or not to pass) Alao for the President.

Dr. Jerome Jiga, Shehu Close, Zaria, Kaduna State