From: FRED ITUA, Abuja
The Senate adhoc committee set up to investigate the circumstances surrounding the return of Abdulrasheed Maina to the country and how he was re-admitted into the civil service as a director, on Wednesday, announced that the proceedings would be held in secret.
Senate President Bukola Saraki, on October 24, constituted the committee chaired by the committee chairman on Public Service and Establishment, Emmanuel Paulker.
The committee was mandated to investigate the circumstances surrounding the return of Maina to the country and how he returned to the civil service as a director.
Chairmen and deputies of the three other committees, namely, Anti-Corruption, Judiciary and Interior, were also drafted to join the adhoc panel to investigate the issue.
“We are all very disturbed. I want the committee to work hard and bring this matter back to us. We need to investigate the bridge in our security and how the anti-corruption war is going,” Saraki had said, while charging the committee.
But at its maiden meeting with the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Interior, Abubakar Maigaji, yesterday and officials of the Federal Civil Service Commission, the committee announced that the media will be barred from covering the proceedings.
The committee chairman, Paulker, who spoke addressed newsmen briefly, said the committee will make its findings known at the end of the investigations.
Meanwhile, Paulker has said that the committee will be transparent before, during and after the investigations. He said nobody will be witch hunted.
He said: “It should be stated for the purpose of emphasis that the National Assembly, which is constitutionally saddled with the responsibilities to perform this exercise, is not expected to base its conclusion on the preponderance of views being expressed from members of the public, hence the need to conduct this investigative hearing to be in the right position to make appropriate recommendations to the Senate.
“For the avoidance of doubt, it is pertinent to categorically state that we are on a witch hunting mission, but to perform our mandate in line with the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999, as amended and the Senate Standing Rules.”