President Muhammadu Buhari has reappointed Abike Dabiri-Erewa for a second term as the Chairman of Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM).
The notice of her reappointment was contained in a letter
written by the President to the Senate requesting the Upper Chamber to confirm
her reappointment.
In November 2018, the President first named Dabiri-Erewa as
NIDCOM chair. She was the Senior Special Adviser to the President on Foreign
Affairs and Diaspora before the appointment.
Dabiri-Erewa was also a member of the House of
Representatives representing Ikorodu Federal Constituency in Lagos from
2003-2015. While she was at the House of Representatives, Dabiri-Erewa chaired
of the House Committee on Diaspora Affairs.
Meanwhile, President Buhari also wrote a separate letter to
the Senate seeking the confirmation of appointment of six federal commissioners
of the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) to fill
the existing vacancies in the states.
The nominees are Ayogu Eze, Peter Okpara, Hauwa Aliyu,
Rajiya Ayuba, Kolawole Adebola and Ismailia Agaka.
Furthermore, the red chamber has mandated its committee on interior
to investigate the circumstances causing the delay in the issuance and renewal
of passports by the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS).
The Senate has also asked its committee on interior to probe
the contract for the printing of passports by the NIS.
The Senate issued these directives to its committee on
Interior at the resumption of plenary on Tuesday following a motion by Senator
Uche Ekwunife who said Nigerians are facing hardship and stress in getting
their passports.
She explained that despite the six weeks timeline given by
the NIS to process passports, Nigerians now spend between three to six months
to get them.
The lawmaker further noted that it has become extremely
difficult for passports to be processed in Lagos, Port Harcourt and Abuja and
this is creating a situation where Nigerians who reside in those states now
have to travel to other states in the country to process their passports.