Ministerial screening: Senator, rights group reject Amina Mohammed’s nomination

A Kaduna-based non-governmental organization, Centrum Initiative for Development and Fundamental Rights Initiative, has asked the senate to reject the nomination of Amina Mohammed as ministerial nominee for Kaduna State.

President Muhammadu Buhari, last week, sent a list of 21 ministerial nominees for confirmation.

On the list is Amina Mohammed, a former special assistant on Millennium Development Goals.

The group rejected Ms. Mohammed, who is said to be a nominee from Kaduna State, saying she is not an indigene of the state.

According to the chairman of the group, who is also a senior lecturer at the Kaduna State University, John Danfulani, Ms. Mohammed is from Gombe state.

“We object to the ministerial nominee representing Kaduna State in the person of Amina Mohammed, the group said. ”The objection is predicated on the fact that she is not an indigene of Kaduna State as provided in the constitution, but an indigene of Gombe State.

“The constitutional provisions, allows each state of the federation to have a minister who must be an indigene of that state.

“If the nomination of Amina Mohammed is allowed by the Senators, the state will be short-changed and this will be unconstitutional,” Mr. Danfulani said.

He also called on the three senators representing Kaduna State in the Senate to reject the nomination of Amina Mohammed and direct that an indigene of Kaduna State be nominated and sent for screening.

Also, Danjuma La’ah, the senator representing Kaduna South Senatorial district, raised the observation in the senate chamber on Friday.

He referred to Daily Trust’s citation which said Ms. Mohammed “was born of a Nigerian father from Gombe and a British mother from Wales, and that she was educated in Nigeria from the age of two in Birin Kebbi, Kaduna and Maiduguri, before finishing in Isles of Man”.

Mr. La’ ah then said he would stand against any attempt to impose on the people of Kaduna State a non indigene to represent them at the Federal level.

“Be that as it may, I Senator Danjuma La’ah, stand firmly by the provision of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Section 147 Act(3) – which reads in part, ‘Any appointment under subsection (2) of this section by the President shall be in conformity with the provisions of Section 14(3) of the Constitution, provided that in giving effect to the provisions aforesaid, the President shall appoint at least one minister from each state, who shall be an indigene of such state,” Mr. La’ah said.