The Senate on Wednesday confirmed the appointments of Ambassador Sola Enikanolaiye as Minister of State for Foreign Affairs and Joseph Olasunkanmi Tegbe as Minister of Power, giving legislative backing to President Bola Tinubu’s latest cabinet reshuffle aimed at strengthening diplomacy and stabilising the country’s troubled electricity sector.
The confirmations followed the nominees’ screening at plenary, where they were subjected to scrutiny and responded to questions from lawmakers before being cleared by the Committee of the Whole.
My News HQ had reported that Tinubu, in separate letters transmitted on Tuesday, sought the Senate’s approval for the appointments in line with constitutional provisions.
The requests were read on the floor by Senate President Godswill Akpabio.
The letter partly read, “In compliance with the provisions of Section 147(2) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 as amended, I am pleased to forward for confirmation by the Senate the nomination of Ambassador Shola Enikolaye as Minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
“Please accept, Distinguished Senate President, the assurances of my highest regards,” he added.
The nomination was subsequently referred to the Committee of the Whole for urgent consideration, in line with Senate procedure for cabinet nominees.
In a separate correspondence, Tinubu also sought legislative approval for Tegbe.
The letter partly read, “In compliance with the provisions of Section 147(2) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended), I am pleased to forward for confirmation by the Senate the nomination of Mr Joseph Olasunkanmi Tegbe as Minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
“While I hope this request will receive the expeditious consideration of the Senate, please accept the assurances of my highest regards.”
Akpabio, after reading the letter, referred the nomination to the Committee of the Whole for immediate consideration.
“This correspondence is referred to the Committee of the Whole for immediate action,” he said.
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