The Senate has resolved to issue arrest warrants for the Head of Service of the Federation, Mrs. Didi Esther Walson-Jack; Minister of Works, Senator David Umahi; and the Chairperson of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM), Hon. Abike Dabiri-Erewa, due to their failure to appear before its Committee on Ethics, Privileges, and Public Petitions.
Other public agencies whose heads are at risk of arrest include Union Homes Savings and Loans Plc, Enugu Electricity Distribution Company, and Sally Best Properties Limited.
This decision was made after complaints raised by Senator Neda Imasuen, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges, and Public Petitions, during a plenary session. Senator Imasuen expressed frustration that multiple invitations sent to these ministries, agencies, and officials to address petitions filed by aggrieved Nigerians or corporate bodies had been repeatedly ignored.
In a motion under Senate Order 42, Imasuen called on the Senate to authorize the issuance of arrest warrants. Senate President Godswill Akpabio promptly granted the request, citing Section 89 of the 1999 Constitution, which gives the Senate the power to issue such warrants.
“You already have the power as provided by Section 89 of the Constitution. Please use it by issuing a warrant of arrest against any head of agencies refusing to appear before the public petition committee,” Akpabio stated.
Senator Imasuen later announced that fresh invitation letters had been sent to the affected officials, with a warning that arrest warrants would follow if they failed to appear. He also mentioned that the committee would review a petition this week concerning the withholding of a student’s results by JAMB, allegedly due to a vindictive report.