Okonjo-Iweala may appear before Senate today

Posted by admin Legislature, Senate, Women Politics Tuesday, July 5th, 2011

A former Minister of Finance and Managing Director of World Bank, Dr (Mrs) Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, may appear before the Senate today, in line with a move to give her screening expeditious treatment by the Senate.

Sources also said names of other ministerial nominees would be forwarded to the Senate today, while the lawmakers would restart the screening process.

Other names being expected included Ms Amal Pepple from South-South; Nelson Wiike (Rivers); Mrs Zainab Ahmed (Kaduna); Edem Duke (Cross River); Dr Abdurahman Moha-mmed (Jigawa) and Mrs Sarah Ochekpe (Plateau).

Meanwhile, the Rivers State governor, Mr Rotimi Amaechi, on Tuesday, won the battle for the South-South zonal ministerial ticket, beating Ijaw leader, Chief Edwin Clark, to the slot.

President Goodluck Jonathan wrote a letter to the Senate withdrawing the original nominee of Rivers State, Mr Tonye Cole.

While Cole was withdrawn for the nominee of Governor Amaechi, the Chief of Staff to Amaechi, Mr Wiike, a former Head of Service of the Federation, Ms Pepple, an indigene of Rivers State, was also nominated as the South-South nominee.

It was gathered that some petitions against Cole from the business community and protests in Rivers State over his choice might have affected his chances.

Sources said when Cole was nominated, issues were raised that the nomination could cause division in the state, as Cole and Pepple were from riverine areas of the state.

-Tribunewp_posts