From Ndubuisi Orji, Abuja
Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has said the National Assembly has allegedly become an enabler of executive recklessness, adding that the concerns of the populace are not a priority for the parliament.
In a tweet on his handle @atiku on X (formerly Twitter), Mr Abubakar said the trend must stop, as it is detrimental to the country’s democracy.
The former vice president said it was concerning that senators are allegedly reprimanded by the leadership whenever they attempt to hold the executive arm of government accountable.
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“It is uncharitable that whenever members of the Senate stand on the floor of the red chamber to perform their statutory duty of calling the executive to order, they are immediately reprimanded for so doing.
“When Senator Abdul Ningi called the country’s attention to the incident of budget padding in the 2024 Appropriation Bill, rather than calling for a thorough investigation into the observation, the reaction of the Senate was to hand him a suspension. Today, the people of Nigeria are victims of an ambiguous budget framework upon which appropriations for the current fiscal year are hinged, in the face of multiple appropriations.
“Only yesterday (Wednesday), Senator Ali Ndume called for the President to wake up to his responsibilities and provide succour to address the biting hunger and poverty in the country. Ironically, the response of the @NGRSenate to his patriotic warning was to relieve him of his principal office as the Chief Whip of the Senate,” he tweeted.