The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, has denied an allegation from a statement credited to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila in which he is alleged to have charged that Geoffrey Onyeama, the Minister of Foreign Affairs refused to appear before the House plenary and the House Committee on Foreign Affairs to brief them on his efforts to address the plight of Nigerians in the Republic of South Africa.
Spokesman of the ministry, Ferdinand Nwonye in a statement, explained that, “The truth of the matter is that by a letter dated September 9, 2019, by the Chief of Staff to the Hon. Speaker, the Minister of Foreign Affairs was invited to a meeting with the Leadership of the House of Representatives on Wednesday, September 11, 2019 at 11.00am in the Hon. Speaker’s Office.
“By letter dated September 10, 2019, the Office of the Minister of Foreign Affairs wrote to the Chief of Staff to the Hon. Speaker, informing him that the Minister would be in the weekly Meeting of the Federal Executive Council at that time, and that he looked forward to a meeting at a time to be mutually agreed on”.
Nwonye further explained that, “The Ministry is stating clearly that the Honorable Minister and the Ministry respects the institution of the National Assembly”.
The spokesman added that the minister will be glad to appear before the National Assembly, once a new date is communicated.
