Stella Oduah To appear Before Reps Wednesday

The House Committee on Aviation, which is investigating the car scandal, said the minister would no longer appear before it on Tuesday (today) as earlier scheduled.

The committee , headed by Mrs. Nkiruka Onyejeocha, abruptly put off the hearing through a statement on Monday, claiming that it was to give all the stakeholders the opportunity to prepare their documents.

The panel had adjourned hearing on Thursday last week till today.

However, findings indicated that the committee came under pressure to postpone the hearing after Oduah reportedly made “a passionate appeal” to be allowed to appear on Wednesday.

She was said to have explained that she was still in Israel where she had gone to sign the BASA with Israel.

Sources close to the committee said that a representative of the embattled minister “begged for her to be allowed to appear on Wednesday instead of Tuesday.”

One of the sources added, “What we hear is that she made appeals.

“She is still in Israel and it is not clear what time the agreement will be signed today (Monday) for her to fly down to Nigeria on Tuesday to attend the hearing.

“Since her appearance is the main issue left before the committee, the members also considered that it was wise to give her till Wednesday to appear.”

The new twist is different from the tough stance the committee took on Thursday when Onyejeocha ruled that “the minister must appear unfailingly on Tuesday; wether she is in Nigeria or not.”

The committee, through its Clerk, Mr. Abubakar Chana, said the postponement was to give all stakeholders the opportunity to put their documents in order and make detailed presentations.

Part of the statement reads, “This is to notify all stakeholders and the general public that the Public Hearing of the House Committee on Aviation on the purchase of two BMW cars by the NCAA earlier slated for Tuesday, October 29, 2013 has been postponed to Wednesday, October 30, 2013.

“This is to allow ample time for the invited agencies to put their documents together…”

The committee wrote a separate letter to Oduah on Monday, which confirmed that the postponement of the hearing was to give her some grace.

The letter by Chana indicated that the committee received a letter from the minister on Monday explaining why she was unable to attend the hearing.

The committee complained that her non-appearance was delaying the investigation, adding that it was forced to reschedule the hearing till Wednesday.

It warned that failure to attend tomorrow’ session would leave the committee with no option but “to enforce the appropriate laws and apply necessary sanctions.”

The letter reads in part, “I am further directed to inform you that your inability to appear before the committee has become a serious constraint to the committee, as the House of Representatives has mandated the committee to submit its report within one week.

“More so, the committee has been utterly gracious for postponing the hearing to Wednesday, October 30, 2013.

“It is the directive of the House that you should appear on the rescheduled date.”