After purchase of N330m exotic cars, Saraki says NASS ’ ll be prudent

Senate President, Bukola Saraki who only a few days ago took delivery of new exotic vehicles for his office reportedly worth about N330 million against an outcry by Nigerians, has stated that the National Assembly under his watch will “ensure prudent management of resources.”

Saraki in a two-page letter to former President Olusegun Obasanjo also said “This is to ensure that we plug all leakages and minimize waste across our expenditure systems”.

His letter was a reply to an earlier one addressed to the leadership of the National Assembly by the former president in which Obasanjo accused the lawmakers of fixing and earning salaries and allowances far above what the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission approved for them.

Obasanjo had also faulted plans by the lawmakers to acquire new exotic cars for themselves, saying “whatever name it is disguised as, it is unnecessary and insensitive.”

He advised that “a pool of a few cars for each chamber will suffice for any Committee Chairman or members for any specific duty.”

But Saraki who will face the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) on March 11, over charges of false declaration of assets said “the 8th National Assembly has made the issue of plugging leakages and cutting wastages in our public expenditure system a major priority that should not be toyed with. This may have happened in the past but it will not happen with us.”

Read also: CCT postpones Saraki’s day in the dock by 24hrs

Saraki told the former president that “As leaders with a duty, we will not disappoint Nigerians in their yearnings for a more transparent public expenditure system”, adding, that the National Assembly was working with President
Muhammadu Buhari to stem the menace of corruption in the country.

He said, “We are hand in glove with the president on this matter and this is why we are overhauling our oversight functions to make it more effective in exposing corruption in the Ministries, Departments and Agencies,” the senate president said.

“We recognize the hard work our anti-corruption agencies are putting into this fight.

“The Senate is resolved to support them to perform their duty effectively by providing them with adequate funding where necessary, as their work in integral to our oversight responsibility”, he said.

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