Minister’s absence from Senate hearing angers lawmakers

Members of the Senate Committee on Finance were angry over the absence of the minister of state for petroleum, Ibe Kachikwu at its hearing on Tuesday, March 28, 2017.

According to Punch, Kachikwu was invited by the lawmakers to shed some light on the gas flaring penalty in the 2017 revenue profile.

The minister however asked a director in the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) to represent him at the meeting.

What angered the Senators was that the DPR director then asked one of his aides, Mrs. Folashade Odunuga to appear before the Senators.

The Chairman of the committee, Senator John Enoh, who refused to speak with Odunuga, also wondered why Kachikwu did not inform them that he will not be in the meeting.

Enoh said “You mean we invited the Minister of State to come here and the Minister of State asked a director to represent him and the director, in his wisdom, asked you to represent him? This is unacceptable and we will not have you to represent any body.

“It will be difficult to have you. The invitation to the minister was based on a directive of the Senate President for this important interaction, which is necessary for the 2017 budget.

“(We) Wrote the Minister of State, there was no communication from him that a director will represent him. That simple courtesy was absent and lacking. Communicate to your director to communicate to the minister that we refused to take you.”

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Notable, was the blatant refusal of the Customs boss, Hameed Ali to appear before the lawmakers in uniform.

The Senators later agreed to summon Kachikwu to appear before it on Thursday, March 30, 2017.