NIGERIA: HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES COMMITTEES

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ABUJA 002047

SIPDIS

STATE FOR AF/W, INR/AA
DOE FOR GEORGE PERSON

E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/15/2018
TAGS: PGOV KDEM PINR NI
SUBJECT: NIGERIA: HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES COMMITTEES
ANNOUNCED

Classified By: Acting Political Counselor Cheryl Fernandes for reasons
1.4. (b & d).


1. (U) Summary: On October 9 Speaker of the House of
Representatives Dimeji Bankole named new chairmen of the
House's Standing Committees (reconstituting those he
dissolved in July) and increased the number of committees
from 72 to 84. Nearly all of the former chairmen retained
their seats, but a handful of positions were conceded to
opposition parties. Members of the Integrity Group remained
in their previous positions, reportedly by choice. Notable
changes include the removal of former Speaker Etteh's
loyalists from their positions, the movement of Abike Erewa
from the Media Committee to the newly formed Diaspora
Committee, Habeeb Fashinro's appointment to the Legislative
Budget and Research Committee, and Beni Lar's appointment to
the Human Rights Committee. End Summary.


2. (U) On July 31, Speaker of the House of Representatives
Dimeji Bankole dissolved 69 of the 72 Standing Committees
just before the House went on a six-week recess. On October
9, Bankole named new chairmen of the House's Standing
Committees and increased the number of committees from 72 to

84. The new committees include: Ministry of the Niger Delta,
Internal Security, Climate, Civil Society and Donors, Lake
Chad, Banking and Currency, Women (in) Parliament, Housing,
Diaspora, Constituency Outreach, and Urban Development.
Nearly all chairmen retained their seats, but Bankole did
concede a handful of leadership positions to opposition
parties. The People's Democratic Party (PDP) received 70
chairmanship positions; the All Nigeria People's Party (ANPP)
received 7; the Action Congress (AC) received 2; and the
Progressive Peoples Alliance (PPA) received 1. Local media
quoted Bankole saying, "We did this exercise with all sense
of fair play. These are the statistics: 9% of the chairmen
were dropped, 27% are brand new, 50% were reshuffled from one
seat to the other, 60% were returned but not necessarily in
the committees they were before."


3. (C) Several core members of the Integrity Group (which was
originally organized by members of the House in opposition to
former Speaker Patricia Etteh),including Farouk Lawan (PDP,
Kano State),Ternugu Tsegba (PDP, Benue State),and John
Halims Agoda (PDP, Delta State),chose to remain with their
previous committees despite offers to change positions.
Tsegba recently told PolFSN that being a member of the House
is most important and not serving on a specific committee
does not limit the influence he can exert on an issue.
(Comment: Post presumes the members of the Integrity Group
maintained their positions to ward off criticism that their
effort to remove former Speaker Patricia Etteh was motivated
by a desire to secure better positions. Also, as members of
the Integrity Group are reportedly uncomfortable with some of
Bankole's more independent actions, maintaining their current
positions tactically enables them to support Bankole if his
committee changes are successful, or to distance themselves
if problems arise. End Comment.)


4. (C) Overall, Bankole appears to have carried out the
reshuffle using a team approach, and based appointments on
merit. Still, among the reconstituted committees there are
several notable changes, including:

-- the removal of Etteh's loyalists from their positions

-- the movement of Abike Erewa (AC, Lagos State) from the
Media Committee to the newly formed Diaspora Committee
(Comment: Erewa, a sponsor of the Freedom of Information
bill, is a member of the same ethnic group and zone as
Bankole, although not a close associate; she was likely
appointed to Diaspora to keep her busy traveling and out of
the way. End Comment.)

-- Habeeb Fashinro's (ANPP, Lagos State) appointment as
chairman of the Legislative Budget and Research Committee
(Comment: Post has found Fashinro to be abrasive and lacking
in the ability to move from theory to implementation. He is,

ABUJA 00002047 002 OF 002


however, a trusted member of Bankole's inner circle. End
Comment.)

-- Beni Lar's (PDP, Plateau State) appointment as chair of
the Human Rights Committee (Note: Lar was previously the
chairwoman of the Women Affairs Committee. Her father,
Solomon Lar, was a member of the groups which helped organize
the PDP, and held a number of leadership positions in the
party. Beni Lar has a Western-leaning perspective and is
adept at connecting people to resolve issues and move plans
forward. In her first term in office, Lar has shown interest
in many issues including women's affairs and corruption. End
Note.)


5. (U) A complete list of the committees and the chairmen has
been submitted to AF/W.


6. (U) This cable was coordinated with Consulate Lagos.
Piascik