Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege has assured that the 9th National Assembly would provide an enabling environment for the implementation of ‘Next Level’ agenda for the benefit of all Nigerians.
Speaking with journalists in Daura, Katsina State, shortly after he and ten All Progressives Congress (APC) governors paid a Sallah homage to President Muhammadu Buhari, Senator Omo-Agege urged all citizens to continue to work for the peace, unity and progress of the country.
Speaking on the significance of Eid el-Kabir, Senator Omo-Agege who also represents Delta Central senatorial district in the Senate : “Eid-el Kabir is the feast of sacrifice. We felt it was right since the Senate President is far away in Saudi Arabia, offering prayers for this country and the National Assembly leadership, for us to come in here representing him and the Senate to express felicitations with Mr. President as he celebrates this feast.
“You know it has not been very easy for us as a country in terms of the challenges we faced but this notwithstanding, Mr. President has managed to steer the ship of state very successfully; so, we decided on visiting him at home, to felicitate with him and congratulate him.
“It is also to reassure him that going forward, in the National Assembly is ready to provide the enabling environment for the contents of the Next Level agenda to be implemented”, Senator Omo-Agege stated.
Governors in attendance for the Sallah homage to President Buhari in Daura include Atiku Bagudu (Kebbi), Aminu Bello Masari (Katsina), Godwin Obaseki (Edo), Inuwa Yahaya (Gombe), Mohammad Badaru (Jigawa), Nasir El-Rufai (Kaduna), Babajide Sanwo-Olu (Lagos), Abdullahi Sule (Nasarawa), Kayode Fayemi (Ekiti) and Gboyega Oyetola (Osun) as well as the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Boss Mustapha.
Senator Omo-Agege also expressed confidence of the capacity of the ministers-designate to deliver the Next Level Agenda to Nigerians, noting that the compliance of President Buhari with all relevant rules in choosing them made them to have an easy ride through the screening process.
“No doubt, they (ministers-designate) were carefully selected before their nomination by Mr President, we have full faith and confidence in Mr President’s judgment in the selection process.
“Our job at the Senate is to ensure that all of the nominees meet the constitutional requirement for membership of the Federal Executive Council, which as you know is very simple – all that is required is qualification for membership of the House of Representatives.
“So, to a lot of us, it was a check list: the moment we found out that you are a Nigerian citizen, you are a member of the All Progressives Congress (APC), because you must belong to a party before you can be a member of the House of Representatives, you meet the educational qualification which is education up to school certificate level and you shouldn’t have been convicted of a crime within the last ten years.
“We went through that, we relied on the confidence and capacity of Mr President to do the right thing which he has done,” he said.
It would be recalled that the 9th Senate had screened and confirmed all 43 nominees sent by President Buhari.
President Buhari is expected to inaugurate his new cabinet on August 21, 2019.
Signed:
Yomi Odunuga,
Special Adviser, Media and Publicity to the Deputy Senate President
