The House of Representatives has decided to establish an Adhoc committee to scrutinise the appointments made by Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) under its jurisdiction from 2015 to 2023.

The house has also requested the Federal Character Commission to provide details on the appointments carried out by the MDAs.

This decision follows the adoption of a motion presented by Professor Paul Nnamchi, a member from Enugu state, during a plenary session.

The lawmaker emphasised that while the Federal Character Commission Act was enacted to uphold and ensure compliance with the principles of proportionate distribution of bureaucratic, economic, media, and political positions at all levels of government, there is a prevailing perception of a blatant dominance of these positions by a specific region at the expense of others.

Professor Nnamchi pointed out that “the Federal Character Commission has neglected its constitutional and statutory duties and has devolved into a clash of personal interests among its commissioners.

“The Constitution mandates that the Federal Republic of Nigeria should be a state founded on the principles of democracy and social justice, promoting national integration, and rejecting discrimination based on place of origin, sex, religion, status, ethnicity, or language association,” he stated.

He also noted that the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended) empowers the National Assembly with explicit authority to expose corruption, inefficiency, or wastage in the execution or administration of laws falling within its legislative competence, as well as in the allocation or administration of funds appropriated by the Assembly.

This responsibility is regarded as a primary duty of oversight and supervision.

Prof Nnamchi highlighted that the Standing Orders of the House specify that all MDAs must submit the reports required by law to the Speaker within three months after the end of the reporting period.

“Failure to comply with this requirement results in appropriate sanctions as outlined in the Legislative houses,” he stated.

He further asserted that it falls within the legislative competence of the National Assembly, particularly its relevant committee, when constituted, to compel the Federal Character Commission to fulfill its constitutional and statutory obligations.

Having adopted the motion, the house instructed the Federal Character Commission to provide the character balancing index of all MDAs during the specified period for review.

The house mandated the relevant committee, once formed, to report back within four weeks for further legislative action.