In a decisive move on Thursday, June 11, the Senate dissociated itself from the warrant of arrest issued against Mele Kyari, former Group Chief Executive Officer of the NNPC, by the Senate Committee on Public Accounts.
Furthermore, the lawmakers rejected the adversarial comments credited to Senator Adams Oshiomhole (Edo North), who allegedly characterized the state-owned oil firm as a “bunch of criminals and thieves” during Wednesday’s investigative panel hearing.
The issue took centre stage during Thursday’s plenary after Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele (Ekiti Central) raised a point of order, citing Orders 41 and 51 of the Senate Standing Rules.
Bamidele urged the chamber to reaffirm a critical legal boundary: under sections 4, 5, and 6 of the Legislative Houses (Powers and Privileges) Act, only the Senate President possesses the statutory authority to issue an arrest warrant to compel a witness to appear. He stressed that no committee has the power to issue, authorize, or execute such a warrant without the explicit approval of the Senate President.
Following a heated debate, lawmakers voted to discountenance the purported warrant issued against Mele Kyari, ruling that the Public Accounts Committee had acted completely outside its constitutional powers. Deputy Senate President Barau Jibrin strongly supported this stance, declaring during the debate that the panel had clearly exceeded its mandate.
The Senate also formally disowned the sweeping allegations made by Senator Adams Oshiomhole, clarifying that his comments do not represent the official position, findings, or opinions of the red chamber.
“I want to commend the Leader for performing his duty. Issuing warrants is what the Senate President should do. The committee overstepped its bounds. We should take this as a lesson,” he said.
Senate Chief Whip Tahir Monguno (Borno North) reminded lawmakers that the legislature must always operate strictly within the law.
“The Senate, as the highest lawmaking body in this country, should not only be above board but must manifestly be seen to be above board in conducting its constitutional roles,” Monguno stated.
Weighing in on the debate, Senate Minority Leader Abba Moro urged his colleagues to avoid statements that could be interpreted as direct attacks on the integrity of public officials.
“We should not make statements that seek to impugn the character of public officers,” Moro cautioned. “Nigerians are watching us every step of the way, and I advise all our colleagues to play by the rules of the game.”
Senator Adamu Aliero (Kebbi Central) strongly condemned Oshiomhole’s comments about the NNPC, urging the red chamber to clearly distance itself from the remarks.
“With due respect, the statement made by Distinguished Senator Adams Oshiomhole is reckless,” Aliero declared. “It undermines not only the integrity of the NNPC but also the Federal Government.”
Supporting this stance, Senator Orji Uzor Kalu (Abia North) called on Oshiomhole to publicly withdraw his statement, arguing that it was fundamentally wrong to criminalize the national oil company.
Granted the right of reply by Senate President Godswill Akpabio, Senator Oshiomhole explained that his explosive remarks were made in the heat of a tense exchange during the committee hearing.
He clarified that his outburst was provoked by a former NNPC finance official, whose comments he considered deeply offensive to the senators present.
“I thought it is settled in law, the other side must be heard. Before motions are raised, I should be properly briefed,” Oshiomhole said.
“The immediate past finance officer of NNPC was asked to speak to the report. But he made comments saying, ‘Nobody has the monopoly on patriotism. It is you senators who send your children to work in NNPC.”
“On my choice of words, I reacted under extreme provocation. I have a duty to the Nigerian nation first. I acted under provocation because distinguished senators were being attacked.”
While defending his reaction, the former Edo State Governor acknowledged that there are many responsible managers within the NNPC, insisting that his intervention was solely aimed at defending the integrity of the Senate during the hearing.
“You gave us a job to do. May it not be said that I was there when this senate was abused. There are many responsible managers in the NNPC,” he added.
