•••S/E NASS Members Keep Mum.
By Kamsi Anayo
The appointment of a substantive Clerk of the National Assembly is currently causing controversy following the denial of the appointment of Dr Chinedu Akabueze, who is next in rank.
Upon the retirement of the former Clerk of the National Assembly, Mohammed Ataba Sani and the retirement of the Deputy Clerk, Alhaji Salisu A Maikassi , the Director of Finance at the National Assembly was asked to assume office by the National Assembly Commission even when Akabueze a carrer National Assembly staff was next in rank to take over the position.
The Commission later reversed itself by reappointing the immediate past Clerk who had earlier proceeded on retirement, a development that drew the anger of some pan political pressure groups.
The Senate Chief Whip, Orji Uzor Kalu had been championing the maintenance of equity in the key appointments at the National Assembly which led to Akabueze serving as Clerk of the House of Representatives, and a clerk of the Senate before this development.
According to the South East Coordinator Nigeria In Safe Hands Comrade Chukwuemeka Kennedy Nnebe who spoke on Monday in Awka;
“A run down of the appointment of Clerk of the National Assembly has shown that the North East, North Central and North West have occupied that position as well as the South West and that has been based on ranking”
“But now the next in rank is from the South East and they want to change the rule of the game and our National Assembly members from the South East are there keeping Solent.
“We have been making contacts with them and top chieftains of the ruling All Progressives Congress APC from the South East over this frustrating act and non of them seem to care about it.
*It is only the likes of the Senate Chief Whip Orji Uzor Kalu that has been fighting for the right thing to be done and we salute him for that.
Nnebe further lamented that even the top Chieftains of the All Progressives Congress APC of South East extraction have chosen to look the other way while their kinsman is facing marginalization.
The body urged Kalu to continue to impress on other colleagues from the South East to ensure that this modern day marginalization doesn’t continue.
