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Sunday 21 June 2015
POLITICSTHISDAY
Kwankwaso and the 8th National Assembly
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21 Jun 2015Kwankwaso and the 8th National Assembly
Atiku warns APC chieftains over Internal Opposition
- Category: REPORTS
- Published on Sunday, 21 June 2015 15:53
- Written by Elombah.com
Former Vice President and chieftain
of All Progressives Congress (APC), Atiku Abubakar says it is dangerous
for any individual or group in the ranks of the ruling party to
constitute themselves into an opposition even before the constitution
and take off President Muhammadu Buhari's government.
The former Vice President made the
call against the backdrop of developments in the polity, which he notes
are interplay of forces and interests that are dynamic, but must not be
promoted to the point of being a threat to our democracy and the new
administration.
In a press statement released by his
media office in Abuja on Sunday, 21 June and signed by Mazi Paul Ibe,
the Turaki Adamawa while acknowledging that it is legitimate and
desirable for individuals or groups to seek to pursue their interest, it
must be done with the benefit of sustaining our democracy and promoting
equity, fair play and justice in mind.
"Anything to the contrary may
jeopardise our hard-earned democracy and constitute a clog in the wheel
of the new administration," Atiku said.
He noted that because of the
historic nature of the mandate of President Muhammadu Buhari and the
arduous challenges ahead to deliver on making Nigeria work for all
Nigerians, it is important, especially for members of his own party, to
rally behind him in the quest to enthrone good governance, that will
spur security and stability, economic and social development, job
creation, infrastructure renewal and above all a better life for
Nigerians.
The former Vice President urged
members of the APC to emulate the unity of all the presidential
contestants after the party's Lagos primaries and support the President
to form his government and get to work.
The statement exonerated Atiku
Abubakar of the purported hijack of the party and the National Assembly
towards 2019 as figment of the imagination of those promoting it and
asked Nigerians to ignore all such insinuation.
He notes that the recent outcomes of
the National Assembly election contrary to insinuations are products of
interplay of politics which is itself in constant motion.
"In politics, it is a mistake to
expect fixed outcomes. As the President has done, let's all come to
terms with what has happened in the interest of the system and move on."
Open Letter to Buhari on N5000 stipend to 25 Million poor Nigerians
- ARTICLE
- Published on Friday, 19 June 2015 21:39
- Written by Shaibu Stephen Ojate
Your Excellency Sir, I must first of
all let you that i am one of your ardent critics in Nigeria. My
criticism is not borne out of the fact that i hate you but aimed at
pointing out your weakness and also to bring to your knowledge areas you
need to take to correction for positive result.
Yesterday, I read in Daily
Independent Newspaper that you have finally resolved to redeem your
promise to give out N5000 each to unemployed Nigerians as part of your
plans to reduce hardship among unemployed individuals in Nigeria
following your earlier pledge during your campaign.
While I commend you for making the
plight of poor unemployed Nigerians a priority in your administration, I
must also remind you that your intended programme is tantamount to
chasing shadow and leaving substance. I see it as one of those white
elephant projects embarked upon by our past leaders to get applause from
the public that they are working only for them to abandon them due to
lack of fund to continue it.
It is good for unemployed Nigerians
to gain something from your administration but i must make it clear to
you that you are taking wrong step on our National problems. Giving
N5000 each to 25Million is just like somebody is having Stomach pain and
the Doctor resolves giving him Panadol. You would agree with me that
Panadol tablet would be good for somebody suffering from headache and
not stomach pain. Thus, giving out N5000 to 25Millions is just like the
case i have illustrated above.
Point to note, if you successfully
disbursed out the said fund to Nigerians, it would cost the Nation One
hundred and fifty billion naira per month and One trillion five hundreds
billion naira per year. This is a huge fund.
While I commend you for making the plight of poor unemployed Nigerians a priority in your
administration, I must also remind you that your intended programme is tantamount to
chasing shadow and leaving substance. I see it as one of those white elephants
embarked upon by our past leaders to get applause from the public
May I bring to your knowledge that
Ajaokuta Steel and Itakpe iron ore companies are lying down in Kogi
State. From the analysis i got from those working in these companies, i
was made to understand that Nigerian government needs barely half a
trillion naira to complete the projects. The One Trillion and Five
Hundred Billion Naira that you plan to give out to 25Million Nigerians
can perform wonder in these two companies if put to use.
Why not divert the said fund to
complete Ajaokuta Steel and Itakpe Iron Ore Companies as the duo are
capable of generating millions of jobs for unemployed Nigerians both
upstream and downstream sector? Also, the newly employed persons in
these companies would have money to take care of their dependents and
this would go a long way to eradicate poverty in the land just like you
yearned for. These companies when fully operational would have
multiplier effect on Nigerians as it would contribute greatly to
Nigerian economy. Vehicle and other metal products would be
manufactured in Ajaokuta Steel Company.
Let me declare to you that if it is
laudable achievement you want to get from you administration, you stand
to be reckoned with when you resuscitate Ajaokuta steel and Itakpe Iron
Ore companies. Nigeria would remember you as one Leader that
resuscitated Ajaokuta steel and Itakpe Iron Ore companies both in Kogi
State if you heed to my call as expending one trillion and five hundred
billion naira does not implied that the suffering of the 25 million
Nigerians would be totally eradicated. Kindly take to my advice as
expending One trillion five hundreds Billion on unemployed Nigerians
amounts to waste.
Saturday 13 June 2015
Missteps that altered APC’s NASS agenda.
Missteps that altered APC’s NASS agenda.
June 13, 2015
Saraki and Dogora
Senator Bukola Saraki and Yusuf Dogara emerged as the leaders of the 8th National Assembly against the will of their party. FISAYO FALODI, in this piece, writes about the tactical missteps that disrupted the ruling party’s agenda
The emergence of Dr. Bukola Saraki and
Yakubu Dogara as the Senate President and House of Representatives
Speaker of the 8th National Assembly came to many people as a surprise.
Interestingly, the development defied the calculation of the ruling All
Progressives Congress, which has its preferred candidates for the
positions.
The APC has majority of seats in the two chambers of parliament.
The race for the leadership of the 8th
National Assembly started not long after the APC was declared winner of
the March 28 presidential election. As expected, the race led to the
formation of various interest groups within the party with each group
scrambling to get what it considered the best for it.
The groups’ decision was reinforced by
President Muhammadu Buhari’s claim that he would rather prefer the
National Assembly members to elect their leaders without any
interference.
Interestingly, the now opposition
Peoples Democratic Party cashed in on the situation to strategically
position itself to gain lofty advantage over the APC, which was
struggling to reach a consensus on the Assembly’s leadership. The
decision culminated in the PDP’s adoption of Saraki and Dogara for the
positions of the Senate President and Speaker of the House of Assembly
respectively. It therefore urged PDP members in the National Assembly to
vote for the two men
But Tuesday’s emergence of Saraki and
Dogara as leaders of the two legislative chambers shocked the APC which
had initially selected Senators Ahmed Lawan and George Akume for the
office of the Senate President and Deputy Senate President respectively.
A former Minority Leader, Femi Gbajabiamila, and Tahir Monguno, were
also selected for the leadership of the House of Representatives as the
party’s preferred candidates in a mock election it conducted in Abuja
last Saturday.
Saraki,
who had initially boycotted the mock election even after signing an
agreement earlier in the day with the Lawan group to abide by the
outcome of the poll, was said to have continued his intensive lobbying
of the PDP lawmakers in the National Assembly for support. Dogara
participated in the mock poll, but scored three votes against
Gbajabiamila’s 154. Explaining why it boycotted the shadow election, the
Saraki’s group, popularly called Like Minds, said it took the decision
because of the open ballot system the APC leaders adopted for the
process.
The group said in a statement that the
option was primitive and undemocratic. It said it “shall not be part of a
process that promotes undemocratic electoral process that may result in
rancorous and uncivil situation which inhibits the rights of
individuals to vote for their choice.”
True to its word, the Saraki’s group
boycotted the shadow election while the 8th Assembly Consolidation
Group, the assemblage of lawmakers that promoted Dogara’s interest, also
walked out of the venue with determination to present their candidates
for the leadership of the two chambers of the National Assembly.
Their tactics paid off when the two
groups won elections to lead the National Assembly. Saraki was
unanimously elected as the Senate President by 57 senators present at
the session when the 51 others were at another venue waiting for a
meeting with the leadership of the APC. The meeting never held. Analysts
have also said that even if Lawan’s supporters had been on the floor of
the Senate for the poll, they would have lost. support, the PDP
senators were rewarded with the position of the Deputy Senate President
which Senator Ike Ekweremadu retained for the third time instead of
Senator Ali Ndume, who had also indicated interest in the office of the
Senate Deputy President.
Also, the victory of Dogara in the
keenly contested election with Gbajabiamila equally sprang a surprise as
it stopped the APC’s preferred candidate from assuming the leadership
of the House.
As expected, the outcome of the
elections, after weeks of horse-trading and lobbying by the two
principal officers of the National Assembly, did not go down well with
the APC. The party, in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary,
Alhaji Lai Muhammed, rejected Saraki and Dogara and described the
process that threw them up as unacceptable and treacherous.
The party said, “Senator Bukola and Hon.
Dogara are not the candidates of the APC. The party duly met and
conducted a straw poll and clear candidates emerged for the posts of
Senate President, Deputy Senate President and Speaker of the House of
Representatives, supported by a majority of all senators-elect and
members-elect of the House of Representatives. All National Assembly
members-elect who emerged on the platform of the party are bound by that
decision. The party is supreme and its interest is superior to that of
its individual members.”
But the PDP saw the emergence of the two
principal officers differently. The party said their elections
underscored the fact that no section of the country should be neglected
in national issues. It said in a statement by its National Publicity
Secretary, Chief Olisa Metuh, that the emergence of the two leaders was
victory for the nation’s democracy.
Though the decision of the APC to
downplay the zoning of the positions of the Senate President and
Speaker; alleged overbearing posture of the party’s national leaders;
failure of the party to bring together all the interest groups within
it; and Buhari’s aloofness on the choice of the party’s candidates were
cited by observers as some of the factors that worked against the APC’s
candidates, watchers of political events described the emergence of the
new National Assembly leaders as very interesting. They nevertheless
raised fundamental issues that political parties, including the APC
should imbibe for them to remain relevant.
The KOWA Party presidential candidate in
the last election, Prof. Oluremi Sanaiya, is of the view that too much
interference by the APC prevented the party from achieving its plan. She
particularly asked the party to deemphasise selection of leaders by
allowing the people to exercise the freedom to make their choice.
She said, “We need political parties
that will operate according to the best global practices. I believe that
it is good to allow members of the National Assembly to decide who
their leaders will be without too much interference from their political
parties. The emergence of Saraki and Dogara as the President and
Speaker of the National Assembly should serve as an important lesson for
us to learn.
“Fighting within political parties with
diverse interest groups might not be the best for us in this country and
I am afraid that this is what has started to be playing out now. The
people are beginning to talk about slowness in the pace of activities in
the new government that the country has now.”
Sonaiya, however, raised concern that
the special interests might hamper the speed with which the newly
elected President could deliver governance and move the country forward.
She said, “We need political parties
that are not tied to special interest of certain individuals. Let
Nigerians be smart and begin to give themselves a different set of
paradigms.”
Also, an elder statesman and former
governor of old Kaduna State, Alhaji Balarabe Musa, believes that the
senators and members of the House of Representatives elected their
leaders according to the law, saying it would be unfortunate if anyone
would want to disagree with the lawmakers’ decisions.
He said, “One thing I want to point out
is that the way the Senate President and the Speaker were elected
justified the need for the government of national unity because the
APC-led government will need the support of the PDP senators to carry
out its responsibilities. This definitely justifies the call for the
government of national unity.
“The APC senators could not alone elect
the Senate President and the APC members in the House of Representatives
could not elect the Speaker without the support of their PDP
colleagues. So, they should all work together for the development of the
country. “The election of the Speaker and the Senate President followed
democratic process and that should be understood by the APC. I know the
party did not like the fact that its preferred candidates did not
emerge as the leaders of the National Assembly, but the party has to
accept the reality on the ground. The party should toe the path of the
President who had indicated interest in working with the two men. That
should be the guideline for the APC and its chieftains.”
The elder statesman, however, decried
moves by the APC to sanction the National Assembly leaders, adding that
such moves would not promote the interest of the country.
Musa said, “APC should rescind its
decision to sanction Saraki and Dogara. Already the situation is tense;
the party should desist from what will make the situation become worse.”
A social commentator, Mr. Taiwo
Akinlami, was not surprised about the outcome of the inauguration and
the emergence of the leaders of the 8th Assembly. He said the APC, which
is the amalgamation of different political parties, was characterised
by various groups which wanted their interests protected.
Akinlami said, “When there are a lot of
interests within a political party, it becomes difficult to aggregate
them. Everybody will want his or her interest protected.”
He, however, demanded effective
performance from the lawmakers, especially in the areas of assisting the
executive to provide security for the citizens.
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