Fred Itua, Abuja
Despite the growing criticism by governors from the South So, the Senate has commenced The process of confirming the appointment of Pius Odubu, as chairman of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC).
This is coming after the upper legislative chamber formally announced that it was in possession of the nomination of of a 16-man membership of the NDDC board.
The Red Chamber gave its committee on Niger Delta one week within which it must conclude the screening of the nominees and submit report.
Dr. Odubu was the deputy hovernor to former Governor Adams Oshiomhole, now National Chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
Among the board members are Bernard Okumagba from Delta State, who will serve as Managing Director; and Otobong Ndem from Akwa Ibom, who was nominated as the Executive Director, Projects.
Others are Maxwell Okoh from Bayelsa State;, Jones Erue from Delta State; Victor Ekhator from Edo State; Joy Nunieh from Rivers State; Nwogu Nwogu from Abia State; Theodore Allison from Bayelsa State.
Also on the list are Victor Antai from Akwa Ibom State; Maurice Effiwatt from Cross River State; Olugbenga Elema from Ondo State; Uchegbu Kyrian from Imo State; and Aisha Muhammed from Kano State representing North-West area on the board.
From Adamawa State, President Buhari appointed Ardo Zubairu to represent the North-East; Ambassador Abdullahi M. Bage was appointed from Nasarawa State to represent North Central zone.
Meanwhile, the Senate has referred to its committee on Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal Matters, the confirmation of Justice J.T Tsoho as Chief Judge of the Federal High Court of Nigeria.
In a letter addressed to the president of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan dated October 28, President Muhammadu urged the parliament to give the request speedy consideration. The committee chaired by Opeyemi Bamidele is expected to turn in the report within one week. Tsoho has been in acting capacity for a while now.
Also billed for confirmation are three nominees for appointment as State Resident Electoral Commissioners for the Independent National Electoral commission (INEC).
In another development, the Senate directed the management of the University of Maiduguri (UNIMAID) to stay action on the recent increment of tuition fees for students attending the institution.
The upper chamber also mandated its Committee on Tertiary Education and TETFUND to investigate the matter in a bid to finding lasting solution to the issue.
Sponsor of the motion, Abubakar Kyari (APC, Borno North) bemoaned the recent decision by the UNIMAID management to increase the registration and other fees of the school from N25,000 to N129,000, an increase of over 400 percent. “Half of the men in North-East Nigeria have received no education at all, and this figure rises to over sixty-one percent for women. It is imperative that schools in the North-East should remain of strategic national interest with overwhelming National Security importance,” Kyari said.