Tension flared in the Senate on Thursday as Senators Adams Oshiomhole (Edo North) and Ali Ndume (Borno South) clashed during the screening of Reno Omokri for an ambassadorial role.
Omokri appeared before the Senate alongside other nominees when Oshiomhole stated:
“I have proudly served as a governor, the head of a subnational government. So when I speak, those who have not been governors should listen.”
Earlier, the Senate Committee on Foreign Affairs had cleared former Aviation Minister Femi Fani-Kayode for an ambassadorial position. Fani-Kayode, who also served as Minister of Culture, was given the customary “take a bow and go” treatment, a practice extended to former ministers, lawmakers, and ambassadors with established public service records. Former Interior Minister and retired Army General Abdulrahman Dambazau received the same courtesy.
Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele defended the procedure, saying it applies to nominees with verifiable records and prior legislative experience, whose public profiles are already known to lawmakers.
Meanwhile, some senators expressed opposition to Omokri’s nomination, citing his past remark in which he allegedly referred to President Bola Tinubu as a “drug baron.”
