The deputy clerk of the
National Assembly, Benedict
Efeturi, confirmed to police
investigators that the
senate’s standing orders
used for the 2015 elections
of Bukola Saraki and Ike
Ekweremadu as senate
president and deputy
respectively, were different
from the 2011 version which
should have been in use at
the time, details of police
investigation seen by
PREMIUM TIMES show.
Mr. Efeturi made the
disclosure to the Criminal
Investigation and
Intelligence Department of
the Nigerian Police, which
investigated allegations that
the rules were forged to help
Messrs. Saraki and
Ekweremadu to their posts.
He however said the
alteration, which some
senators denounced as
illegal as lawmakers were not
informed about, was based
on the directive of the
former senate leadership,
led by its president, David
Mark.
He said the amendment was
done “by convention and
practice” and not be
“procedure”, as previous
versions of the rules were
amended by the same
method.
Messrs. Saraki, Ekweremadu,
Efeturi and a former clerk of
the National Assembly, Salisu
Maikasuwa, have been
charged with forgery. They
were arraigned on Monday
before a High Court in Abuja.
They deny wrongdoing. The
senate president and his
deputy accuse President
Muhammadu Buhari of bias,
and argue that the case is a
violation of the independence
of the legislature.
In his statement to the
police, Mr. Efeturi, who is
also the Clerk of the Senate,
said the leadership of the
seventh Senate under Mr.
Mark ordered the 2015
Standing Rules be amended
“not necessarily by
procedure” but “by
convention and practice”.
According to the report, he
“stated that the leadership
of the National Assembly of
the 7th Senate ordered the
2015 Standing Rules as
amended by their convention
and practice. (He stated) that
the Senate Standing Orders
2003, 2007 and 2011
followed the same procedure
as that of 2015. He
emphasized that in the
Parliament, amendment of the
Standing Orders is by
practice not necessarily by
procedure.
“He further stated that
during the ruling of the
Senate President on the 24th
of June 2015, that the
Senate Standing Orders of
the Senate 2015 is authentic,
final, relevant and cannot be
challenged. He attached a
copy of the debates of the
Senate on Wednesday, the
24th of June where the
Senate President ruled (that)
the Senate Standing Order
2015 as authentic Standing
Orders of the 8th Senate.”