The Senator representing Borno South Senatorial District, Ali Ndume, says the Senate only confirms persons nominated for appointment by the Presidency, but is not directly responsible for screening them.
The lawmaker explained that the State Security Service was responsible for the screening of nominees before they were confirmed by the Senate.
“We are not screening. Get this clear. Screening and confirmation are two different things. Before the president sends a candidate to the Senate, there are a lot of processes, including screening him not only on certificates, but also conducting a background check by the SSS. The SSS has to clear him,” he said.
Ndume made the statement during an interview on Channels Television’s Politics Today program on Thursday evening.
The Senator’s reaction follows the recent resignation of the former Minister of Science, Technology, and Innovation, Uche Nnaji, following allegations of forgery of his degree and National Youth Service Corps discharge certificates.
Nnaji has, however, described the investigative piece into his alleged forgery by the PREMIUM TIMES as an “orchestrated, sustained campaign of falsehood” against him in a statement following his resignation.
He also maintained that his decision to resign was not an admission of guilt but a move to uphold due process and respect ongoing judicial proceedings.
Meanwhile, Senator Ndume described the issue of forgery as a big problem in Nigeria, not restricted to the political class.
He narrated that the Senate had at one time rejected a candidate flagged by the SSS, insisting that the Senate’s role was the confirmation of nominees, not the screening of their documents.
“This matter of forgery in Nigeria is a big problem, not only restricted to the political class, but even you now, I don’t know your certificates. Everybody, all of these people have classmates. All these people, Nnaji, have classmates.
“Last time the SSS brought something against somebody, and we dropped the person. So don’t say we are not doing our job. We are not even to do the screening; we are to do confirmation,” he said.
