NASS REPUBLIC: Recalling Senator Ningi. Two other stories, and a quote to remember

The Senate, last week, hinted on recalling Senator Abdul Ningi from his three-month suspension.
We tracked two other stories from the National Assembly (NASS), within the week under review.

1.Recalling Ningi

On March 29, sequel to Senator Ningi’s threat to the Senate President, Senator Godswill Akpabio, to recall him within seven days or face legal action, Akpabio stated that he might possibly be recalled from his suspension in a few days.

Akpabio stated this when he was answering questions from Journalists on arrival from the Inter-Parliamentary Union meeting in Geneva, Switzerland.

“It is a parliamentary decision. I have not seen the letter yet. But Senator Ningi is one of us. I mean what is suspension?” he said.
“I believe that in a few days, he will join us. So, there is no problem. It would be resolved amicably. The Senate is a family.”

The Akpabio, and Ningi exchange, once again, exposes the somewhat undefined theatrics that pervades Nigeria’s politics.

Specifically, the Senate President’s hint on recalling Ningi within a few days after the latter’s threat of a legal action sparks insinuations of what might be playing behind the scene.

It may, therefore, signal the on going horse-trading to settle the dust-raising scandal that Ningi’s allegation of budget padding had triggered.

Whatever be the case, time, as a revealer, will surely tell the reasons behind every action that had trailed the whole Ningi saga.

NASS MEMORY LANE

Who said;

“The recruits are paid less than N50,000 in some cases. How can you pay somebody money that cannot buy him a bag of rice and you expect him to go and sacrifice and put in his best? How can you pay a Nigerian Army, for example, an allowance of N1,200 as his daily money and pay him N2000 only as Duty Tour Allowance (DTA) and put him in the theatre?”

Answer: See end of post

Two other stories

2.Imbibing caution, professionalism in Okuama killing

A member representing Southern Ijaw Federal Constituency of Bayelsa State in the House of Representatives, Hon. Rodney Ebikebina Ambaiowei on March 26, urged the military to imbibe caution and professionalism in handling the killing of soldiers in Okuama community, Delta State.
“Caution and professionalism must be the watchword to forestall unpleasant and regrettable consequences in the approach to bringing the culprits to book,” he said when he addressed a news conference at the NASS, Abuja.

READ ALSO:NASS REPUBLIC: Slashing salaries of lawmakers. Two other stories, and a quote to remember

Ambaiowei’s call subtly questions the Nigerian military’s alleged claim of professionalism in handling crisis of this nature, owing to the regrettable reports of their actions in communities where similar issues had occurred.

It serves as an indirect appeal for the military to stop the alleged reprisal attacks on the community as reports of burning of houses, killing, and arrest of innocent people, among others, which have transformed Okuama into a ghost community, are rife.

Beyond his call, it is incumbent on Ambaiowei to seek the support of his fellow NASS members in ensuring that a thorough independent probe is conducted on the killing of the soldiers, and the alleged reprisal attacks in Okuama.

3.Preventing mass abduction in schools

On March 24, the Speaker of House of Representatives, Hon. Abbas Tajudeen, extolled President Bola Tinubu for the release of the 287 students abducted in Kuriga community of Kaduna State, and called for preventive measures against mass abductions.

Abbas, who made the call when he spoke to newsmen, called for the rescue of other Nigerians captured by criminal groups in different parts of the country.

The Speaker’s call for preventive measures against mass abductions demonstrates that security lessons are yet to be learned, and the Federal Government is yet to stand up to the ugly trend that had plagued the country for decades.

It represents a sad tale of how shoddy the security arrangement had been despite several calls for the Tinubu led-administration to rejig the nation’s security apparatus.

It would be pertinent, however, for Abbas to use his good offices to see that stricter laws that would help in kicking kidnappers out of the Nigerian space are enacted.

Answer: Senator Ali Ndume
Ndume made the statement on January 23, 2024, when he featured on Channels TV’s Politics Today. The Borno Senator is the current Chief Whip of the Senate.

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