The Senate Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal Matters is set to submit its report on President Muhammadu Buhari’s impeachment on Wednesday (today). The panel investigated the approval of the payment of $496 million out of the Excess Crude Account for the purchase of military aircraft.
The 12 Super Tucano aircraft ordered from the United States will be delivered in 2020. The Senate had on Thursday resolved to refer the matter to the committee for legal advice, when lawmakers became divided on it. The panel was given the mandate to see whether the President violated the constitution or not.
Most of the lawmakers who spoke on the withdrawal pointed out that the President had breached Section 80 of the 1999 Constitution, while a few disagreed. Senator Mathew Uroghide, who is the Chairman of the Committee on Public Accounts, had specifically urged the President of the Senate, Bukola Saraki, to allow the chamber to invoke Section 143 of the 1999 Constitution against the President.
"I want the Senate to resolve that what the President has done is procedurally wrong and it is a violation of our constitution. It must be condemned and, of course, the consequences that are contained in the constitution in Section 143 should be invoked" Urhoghide was quoted as saying.
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