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*Situation affecting Senate resumption
*No recall-letter yet, says Ningi’s office
By Terungwa Tyowase, Abuja
There is a stalemate in the ongoing engagements and interventions of some northern political elite both within and outside the Senate to recall suspended Senator representing Bauchi Central, Abdul Ningi over his unfavourable disposition to tender any form of apology to the Senate to fast track his recall.
The Senate had suspended Senator Ningi over allegations of budget padding to the tune of N3.7 trillion against the Senate.
Senator Ningi’s suspension was to last for a period of three months with the caveat that should he show remorse and tender an unreserved apology for dragging the Senate into mud, he could be considered for a recall without necessarily completing the three months suspension.
But since the suspension, there has been an unprecedented pressure as well as legal threats against the Senate President Godswill Akpabio to recall Senator Ningi or face legal actions and political backlash.
While Akpabio has considered recalling Ningi, the South West Senators kicked, insisting that recalling Senator Ningi will set a bad precedent, provide incentives for bad behaviour.
While this back and forth last, a lobby team has been mandated to create a soft-landing for the Senate president by convincing Senator Ningi to tender an apology.
Our correspondent gathered that Senator Ningi has outrightly turned down all attempts to get him to apologise in any shape and manner. A situation that further complicates his recall.
Further findings from Senator Ningi’s private office also revealed that the Senate President; despite the pressure, legal threats and promise made to recall the suspended Senator, an official letter to that effect has not been sent to the Bauchi lawmaker.
According to his office, ” the senator is presently in Saudi Arabia and I am not aware of any communication from the Senate leadership or Senate President for his recall.
“If there was such communication it will come to this office, because this is his private office where he operates from, since he won’t have access to his office in the National Assembly, but like I said he is in Saudi Arabia for lesser Hajj and there is no communication of that nature yet. If there is one, I will tell you because the matter is a public one”.
However, a Senator from the North West who pleaded anonymity told Citizenship Dailythat,”what is happening now is an ego situation. The Senate leadership cannot withstand the pressure to sustain that suspension for three months so they now want my brother Ningi to apologise then they will use that to lift the suspension, but here is the problem, Senator Ningi will not apologise to anybody. At least he mentioned that to me that he will not apologise. Even right on the floor of the Senate when he was about to be suspended he refused to apologise.
“Now he won’t apologise and the Senate cannot continue with the suspension. You see that is the problem with taking hasty decisions based on emotions. If the Senate had done the right thing by referring his matter to the Ethics and Privileges Committee, it won’t get itself into this ego-tripping situation. But some people, especially my colleagues from the South West were just firing and making inflammatory comments as if the matter will begin and end on that day. Today we are here with the repercussion and if we are not careful we may not be able to suspend any other senator again in that chamber.
“Don’t forget that the immediate past Deputy Senate President, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege was suspended. He went to court, got a court judgement and the Senator Bukola Saraki-led Senate did not appeal the judgement and that is where the likes of Femi Falana SAN are coming from, there is a judicial precedent already”.
He continued, “when the South West Senators were shouting and speaking grammar on that day, they didn’t remember that when Omo-Agege’s court judgement wasn’t appealed it was deliberate. Saraki perhaps got good legal advice or allowed it in order to end this arbitrary and whimsical behaviour of tyranny so he allowed that judgement to stand. Today we are boxed into a corner. I really want to see what they will come up with”.
Asked if the shift in the resumption of the Senate by one week was connected with the stalemated situation the Senate has found itself concerning Ningi, the senator said “it is possible”.
He continued, “I remember when the Senate President met with your colleagues he promised at that meeting and even extracted a commitment from the Clerk of the National Assembly with his management staff that the chamber renovation will be completed by March. They said so, and the chamber work is completed from what I heard, so what stops us from resuming . They did not give any specific reason for the shift, they just said for unforseen reasons. The only unforseen reason I see here is the tight position the Senate has boxed herself over the unlawful suspension of Ningi. They want to buy more time because there will be tension in that Senate if we resume without taking a stand on that suspension “.
“And let me say this, the Senate president should be careful with allowing those who supported him make comments that attack those who didnt support him. The constitution said there shall be an election to elect a Senate President. It didn’t say annoint or appoint , so every senator has a right to contest. You have won and you should move on without always making references to who voted and who didn’t vote, it was their rights to act so. That is not helpful and I hope he calls those who see a southern Senate President as their own to desist. Ahmad Lawan was Senate President, today he is a committee chairman. David Mark went through same. So Akpabio will certainly not be Senate President for ever”.
It will be recalled that the 7-day ultimatum given Senate President Akpabio to recall the suspended Senator, Abdul Ninigi in a letter from Chief Femi Falana, SAN or face legal actions has elapsed
