The Minority Whip of the Senate, Sen. Philip Aduda, on Tuesday said the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) should be treated as a state in the country and given a ministerial slot.


Aduda, who represents FCT in the senate, canvassed this at plenary of the upper chamber of the National Assembly while reacting to the second list of ministerial nominees submitted by President Muhammadu Buhari.


In a ‘’point of order’’ after the 16 names on the list were read by the President of the Senate, Bukola Saraki, he said that the FCT was crucial and big in the nation’s polity and therefore, deserved representation in the federal cabinet.


He appealed to the president to consider the territory for a ministerial position.
Reading the list to the senators, Saraki assured that the senate would give an expeditious screening and confirmation of the nominees.


On the list are Mrs Khadija Bukar-Ibrahim, Mr Thadeus Daramola, Prof. Anthony Onwuka, Jeffery Onyema, Brig.-Gen. Dan Ali (retd) and Barr. James Ocholi.


Others are Mrs Zainab Ahmed, Mr Okechukwu Elelema, Mohammadu Bello, Mustapha Baba, Aisha Abubakar, Heineken Lokpobiri and Adamu Adamu.


Also on the list are Prof. Isaac Adewole, Pastor Huseni Uguru and Abubakar Bawa.


The new list brought the number of ministerial nominees sent to the senate for confirmation, to 36 and the president had on Sept. 30, submitted a list of 21 nominees.


Meanwhile, the Senate on Tuesday commenced the screening of 21 nominees submitted on Sept. 30, for appointment as ministers.


Before the exercise commenced, the senators held an executive session to finalise modalities to discharge the responsibility.


They also received the report of the Committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions, which recommended that the petition against the nomination of Mrs Amina Mohammed as an indigene of Kaduna state be disregarded.


The committee said that Mohammed is an indigene of Gombe state and should be screened as such. The recommendation was adopted by the senate.



 Chairman of the committee, Sen. Sam Anyanwu, however, appealed that the committee should be given until Wednesday to conclude its reports on the petition against the nomination of Rotimi Amaechi from Rivers state.


The nominees listed for screening on Tuesday, according to the order paper, were Sen. Udo Udoma, Dr Kayode Fayemi, Chief Audu Ogbe, Dr Ogbonaya Onu, Dr Osagie Ehanire, Lt.-Gen. Abduraman Danbazau (retd) and Alhaji Lai Mohammed.


Others were Mrs Amina Mohammed, Suleiman Adamu and Ibrahm Jubril.