The Senate in session
The Senate has shifted its proposed annual vacation by one week, to create time for the screening and confirmation of the 43 ministerial nominees sent to it by President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday.
The Upper legislative chamber also hinted that it would no longer be business as usual during the screening, stressing that this time round, all the nominees would face rigorous screening and would be expected to answer probing questions.
Spokesman for the Senate, Sen. Adedayo Adeyeye (APC-Ekiti) made this known during a news conference on Tuesday in Abuja.
Both chambers of the National Assembly had proposed to begin their six-week annual recess on July 26.
Adeyeye said apart from the extension of the date by one week, the lawmakers would also sit on Friday and July 29, while sitting on each day would extend beyond the normal time.
He added that the Senate would equally suspend its rules on motions, point of order and other plenary businesses to allow a thorough screening exercise.
The lawmaker said the Senate would explore all its constitutional powers over vetting and screening of all the nominees sent by the president.
“As from tomorrow (Wednesday), the Senate will suspend its rules to allow for thorough screening.
“We have decided to embark on the screening exercise even till Friday this week and Monday next week.
“The essence of this is to have enough time to do a thorough job and ask relevant questions as may be required by Nigerians,” Adeyeye said.
The tentative date for the annual recess may be Aug. 3
