Contrary to a claim by Kwara State governor, AbdulRahman AbdulRazak, that the National Council of State (NCS) at it’s inaugural meeting last week passed a vote of confidence on President Bola Tinubu, checks by The Authority revealed that no such confidence vote was passed.
Speaking after a meeting of governors under the aegis of Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF), which came on the heels of another one by the Council of State, Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq of Kwara State told journalists that the Council and NGF jointly passed a vote of confidence on President Tinubu. AbdulRazaq doubles as NGF chairman.
“The high note of the (Council) meeting was a unanimous passage of a vote of confidence on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR, Commander in Chief of the Nigerian armed forces,” the Kwara governor said.
However, a top official at the meeting, told The Authority that what Governor AbdulRazaq told reporters was not an accurate account of what transpired at the meeting of the Council of State.
“Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq sold a dummy to reporters. The Council of State, even though an advisory one made up of past Heads of State, among other serving heads of the judiciary and legislature, cannot be likened to a town hall meeting.
“The meeting is a very serious one that has a list of to-do things which we call agenda or agendum. There was nowhere a motion for a debate on whether or not to pass vote of confidence was on the agenda of the meeting. In any case, I know that such votes are passed in a Parliamentary system of government, and Nigeria runs a presidential system,” noted the official.
According to him, “after the end of the Council meeting, Attorney-General of the Federation, Mr. Lateef Fagbemi, suggested that, in the light of the #endbadgovernance protests, it would be good for the Council to show solidarity with President Tinubu,” offered the official.
“No sooner had the AGF made the proposal than Senate President Godswill Akpabio rose to, in his words, second the motion for Council to pass a vote of confidence on President Bola Ahmed TinubuTinubu,” adding, “to be fair, no former Presidents/Heads of State, nor governors present at the meeting commented on the motion by Fagbemi and Akpabio,” he narrated, adding, “I’m sure the former leaders at the meeting must have been thoroughly embarrassed by Governor AbdulRazaq’s claim.
As provided for in the Nigerian Constitution, the National Council of State has as members – the President who is the Chairman, the Vice President who is the Vice Chairman, all former Presidents and Heads of Governments (courtesy of Nigeria history of military rule), all former Chief Justices, President of the Senate, Speaker House of Representatives, all state Governors, as well as Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation.
