President Musa Yar'Adua's weekend retort for the rule of law to be observed in the handling of the renovation contract scandal in the House of Representatives might be a reaffirmation of his private stand on the issue.
The president had twice distanced himself from the controversy when Madam Speaker, Patricia Etteh, had reportedly solicited his support to stem the investigation of the scam.
The report of the panel eventually set up by the Lower House of the National Assembly found the Speaker and her deputy, Babangida Nguroje to have breached due process in the award of the contract to renovate their official homes in Abuja.
According to The Guardian sources, Madam Speaker went twice to President Yar'Adua to intervene in the matter. But at each occasion, the President reportedly declined.
He is said to have told Etteh that, as the Number 4 citizen in the country, she should be able to handle "the baptism of fire" such as she was being given in the House.
As the President repeated in New York on Friday, he was said to have told the Speaker that the rule of law and due process must prevail at all times under his watch.
Particularly, he reportedly restated his stand not to interfere in the internal workings of the other three arms of government, but to allow strict observance of the oft-abused separation of powers of the tiers of government.
I expect is to have the National Assembly, especially the House of Representatives to take steps according to the rule of law," the President in New York on Thursday evening.
He stressed that "one stand I have taken is to respect the independence of the judiciary and the legislature," adding that, "since I took office in May, I have never interfered in the judiciary."
Yar'Adua insisted that the concept of the rule of law must be complied with in every institution of the Nigerian government, hence, he is expecting the House of Representatives to follow the dictates of the law in handling and deciding the fate of the Speaker.
Perhaps, drawing from the President's position, the PDP machinery had uncharacteristically virtually stayed aloof from the crisis in the House of Representatives.
According to party sources, this could not have happened under the past administration in the country.
As one of the sources put it last night: "In the past under Obasanjo, the party machinery would have been placed at Speaker Etteh's disposal. And the national chairman, Ahmadu Ali, would have declared it a 'family affair.'"
The source continued: By now, Mrs Florence Ita-Giwa, (Obasanjo's representative to the National Assembly whom Yar'Adua re-appointed) would be paying visits to the Apo legislative quarters of the feuding lawmakers.
"And the nine-man panel of the House led by David Idoko would not have had public sittings during the investigation of the infamy.
"So, this time, it is different in the PDP and Speaker Etteh has to contend with both internal and outside forces."
By Akpo Esajere, Group Political Editor
The Guardian
Sunday, September 30, 2007
