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Murtala Yar’adua,
the nephew of Umaru Yar’Adua, the president, yesterday appeared for the
Senate ministerial screening, promising “youthful energy” to the
cabinet, in a move seen as a knock on the group that tried to keep the
ailing president in power.

Mr. Yar’Adua was
the 16th nominee to be screened by the Senate on Tuesday. He harped on
offering the nation his private sector experience and “youthful
energy”, which will lead to finding “new ways of doing old things.”

“The energy of
youth is very important.” Mr. Yar’Adua told the senators. “I can draw a
lot of experience and advice on new ways of doing new things.”

Although he did not
condemn the ‘old ways’ of doing things, he said energy was apparently
lacking in the cabinet. “Energy is what we need,” he said, promising a
bridge to reconnect the old generation of leaders with the youth. “We
find there is (a) disconnect between our generation and yours, and I
hope to bring hope for that connect,” he added.

Mr. Yar’Adua’s
nomination is seen as an attempt by the acting president’s team to
dispel the uncertainty that has clouded President Yar’Adua’s tenure. He
faced less inquiry from the senators on Tuesday, as he made remarks
touching more on contemporary procedures of governance, rather than on
politics.

Organised plenary

Unlike the chaotic
screening session witnessed the previous day, the Tuesday plenary was a
lot more organised. The senate had taken about 45 minutes before the
plenary started properly to hold a closed door session during which
they resolved the grouse generated from the previous screening.

The senate plenary
started at about an hour before midday and lasted till about 6pm,
during which the senate screened 24 nominees, bringing the total number
of screened nominees to 27. A new nominee, Aliyu Idi Hong, the former
minister of state for health, was added to the list that already has 39
nominees.

Although the
screening of Sanusi Dagash, a former senator, was expected to be
stormy, he was allowed to ‘bow and go’, a gesture Mr. Dagash said
surprised him. He was accused of pitching the Senate against President
Yar’Adua over the 2008 budget passage. He, however, started out by
apologising to the senators collectively after he admitted lobbying the
senators individually before the screening. The senators chorused “go
and sin no more” as he headed out of the red chamber.

Evasive ministers

During the
screening, each nominee was asked an average of three questions, which
were answered swiftly. The re-appointed nominees were screened first.
They were each asked to assess their performance in the last cabinet
and then say why they should be re-appointed.

Most of the
re-appointed nominees were, however, evasive with their reactions to
questions. Most claimed they had performed well but could not state
specific projects they executed while in office.

Godswill Orubebe,
who headed the Niger Delta ministry, for instance, while reacting to a
question on whether the amnesty program for the repentant militants in
the Niger Delta has performed well, said, “Amnesty so far is on the
move and I believe (that) the level we have reached now only needs
re-invigoration to move forward.” Mr. Orubebe said the Niger Delta area
did not witness massive constructions during his reign because they
were still planning on how to develop the area. “Planning takes a long
time,” he said.

Other nominees like John Odeh, who headed the environment ministry,
and Humphrey Abba, who was a minister of state for commerce, also
claimed their best achievements as ministers were plans, studies,
program blue prints and “well organised” workshops.