The planned screening of ministerial nominees sent to the Senate last week by President Bola Tinubu may run into some troubled political waters today as lawmakers from the South-East zone were said to have expressed displeasure over what they termed apparent neglect of the zone.

Investigations by the Nigerian Tribune confirmed that the South-East caucus in the National Assembly has been angered by the marginalisation of the zone as seen in the ministerial configuration.

It was learnt that the lawmakers have been meeting since the list was unveiled and that they will seek to halt the screening in the Senate on Tuesday.

A source close to the National Assembly said that lawmakers from the South-East have expressed displeasure that President Tinubu has continued to marginalise the zone despite repeated complaints, especially following the last ministerial nominations, when it was confirmed that the South-East only has 10.4 per cent of the 48 ministers appointed by the president.

A lawmaker in-the-know said that the Senate hierarchy is aware of the lawmakers from the South-East region?s displeasure and that the entire caucus in the National Assembly has mandated the Senate Caucus to take up the matter.

?There is a strong plot against the screening of the ministerial nominees sent to the Senate by the president last week. It is a constitutional matter and we have to deal with it before we can make further progress,? a source stated.

The South-East is particularly angered that while Ogun State, with the nomination of Dr Jumoke Oduwole would have four ministers in the cabinet if confirmed, the South-East has only five ministers as required by the 1999 Constitution, which provides that each state shall have a ministerial nominee.

The South-East caucus is angry that while the North-West has 10 ministers, the South-West has nine, the trio of South-South, North-Central and North-East have eight ministers each. Of the six geopolitical zones in the country, only South-East has five ministers, without the additional zonal representatives.

It was learnt that the South-East caucus in the Senate would rely on Section 14(3) of the 1999 Constitution to make a strong case against the screening of the latest batch of lawmakers.

Section 14 (3) of the 1999 Constitution reads: ?The composition of the Government of the Federation or any of its agencies and the conduct of its affairs shall be carried out in such a manner as to reflect the federal character of Nigeria and the need to promote national unity, and also to command national loyalty, thereby ensuring that there shall be no predominance of persons from a few State or from a few ethnic or other sectional groups in that Government or any of its agencies.?

According to a source in the National Assembly, the predominance of Ogun State is already established with the list of ministerial nominees, a development which he claims negatively affects the South-East.

?It is not just right that one of the 36 states would have four nominations while the entire zone has five nominations, it?s just not right,? a source stated. (Text, excluding headline: Nigerian Tribune)

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