The Senate is currently in an emergency closed session to discuss the proposed recruitment of 774, 000 federal workers.
The closed session started immediately the red chamber resumed plenary on Tuesday.
The federal parliament had suspended the Public Works Programme penultimate week following a disagreement between its committee on Labour and the Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Festus Keyamo.
The lawmakers accused Keyamo of hijacking the recruitment exercise from the National Directorate of Employment, which got N52bn approval to carry out the programme.
Instead of bowing to the verdict of the legislators, Keyamo told journalists on Tuesday that the lawmakers want to control the programme but President Buhari had asked him to proceed with the recruitment process.
The development forced the Senate to hold an emergency closed-door session on Wednesday and mandated presiding officers of both chambers of the nation’s parliament to immediately meet with Buhari on the proposed recruitment.
The development forced the President of the Senate, and the Speaker, House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, secured an appointment for a meeting with Buhari on Thursday where the issue was discussed.
However, the outcome of the meeting between President Muhammadu Buhari and the presiding officers of the National Assembly last Thursday is expected to be discussed today.
The Minority Leader of the Upper Chamber, Senator Eyinnaya Abaribe, had on Friday stated that the Senate would take an official position on the decision by Keyamo to flout its decision on the recruitment of 774, 000 federal workers.
He said the senators were expecting the Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, to brief them on the outcome of Thursday’s meeting between the presiding officers of the National Assembly and the President on the issue.
He had said, “The Senate will take an official position on the issue next Tuesday after listening to the outcome of the meeting between the presiding officers and the President over the matter.
“We asked our presiding officers to meet with President Buhari over the issue and we have not had plenary since they returned. The Senate President will brief us on Tuesday at plenary and we will make a decision on it.”
NAN
