Stakeholders have reacted to the recent call by senate leader, Mohammed Ndume, that the special privileges enjoyed by principal officers of the National Assembly be removed.
Senator Mohammed Ndume
Speaking in Maiduguri, Senator Ndume called for removal of privileges attached to principal officers at the National Assembly; adding that this would eliminate the leadership struggle among legislators.
“I am championing the issue of downgrading the position of presiding officers at the National Assembly, especially the senate president, so as to truly be the first among equals. What causes leadership crisis is because of the excessive privileges attached to the offices.
“If the leadership is truly one among the equals, you will find it difficult even to get somebody fighting to be the senate president. Somehow, you see a senator out of the 109 others suddenly acquiring enormous privileges just because of being elected as senate president.”
“Although he might be given some responsibility-allowances, the senate president or presiding officers should not be allowed excessive privileges like having escorts, long convoy of government vehicles, dozens of armed security men, amongst others. If you say that he is the number three man in the country, so we must protect him. What about millions of Nigerians who do not even have food to eat?“ he said.
Speaker of the National Assembly, Yakubu Dogara and senate president, Yakubu Dogara
Tahir Yusuf, a political scientist, welcomed the decision, but expressed doubts that the majority of federal lawmakers would support it. “I agree that reducing these privileges will go a long way in making the infighting for those positions reduce. However, we must not lose sight of the fact that these things take time to achieve and we already have a National Assembly that has been polarised from day-one by individual ambitions fueled by these privileges,” he said.
A staff of the National Assembly, who requested anonymity for fear of victimisation, rubbished the announcement. “I think what we have here is another case of someone saying nice things to people who want to hear nice things,” The powers that these principal officers allocate to themselves are only increasing and not reducing. I don’t see that (elimination of privileges) happening,” she said.
It would be recalled that former senate president, David Mark, who appeared in court on Tuesday August 18 to defend his election as a fifth term senator against his opponent in the April elections, Daniel Onjeh of the All Progressives Congress (APC), refused to testify from the witness box.
Written By Admin Baba
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