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Tag: Ekweremadu

‘Prosecute Saraki, Ekweremadu’

The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ondo State has called for the prosecution of principal actors in the National Assembly crisis.

It called for the incarceration of the Clerk of the National Assembly, Salisu Maikasuwa for his role in the saga.

A statement by its Publicity Secretary, Abayomi Adesanya, said: “David Mark and Ike Ekweremadu were the two principal officers of the seventh Senate who were also ranking senators in the eighth Senate and custodians of the ‘Senate Standing Order’ and other documents of the seventh Senate.

“Bukola Saraki, being the first beneficiary of this ‘forged Standing Order’ and other ranking senators, who knew of this criminal act, who ought to have the full knowledge of the contents of the text of the ‘Senate Order’ and other relevant documents in the Senate, must also face prosecution and the full wrath of law for complicity.

“It is not possible that the Clerk and other National Assembly staff, would perpetrate this criminality without been approached by the beneficiaries of this forged document, the leadership of the seventh Senate with the support of some ranking senators loyal to Saraki.”

July 28, 2015
Lawyer: Saraki, Ekweremadu must resign for alleged forgery

Human rights lawyer Morakinyo Ogele has urged Senate President Bukola Saraki and his deputy, Ike Ekweremadu, to resign from office following the police investigation, which established a case of forgery of the Standing Rules in the Senate leadership election.

He also advised the police and the Federal Ministry of Justice to arraign Saraki, Ekweremadu, the Clerk of the National Assembly, Salisu Maikasuwa and others who allegedly conspired to forge the Standing Rules to conduct the June 9 election.

Ogele, who described forgery as a “very serious offence”, said both Saraki and Ekweremadu disappointed Nigerians by getting to office when they knew that the document upon which their election was conducted had been forged.

In a chat with The Nation in Ado Ekiti yesterday, the Akure-based legal practitioner, said he was disappointed in Ekweremadu, who himself is a lawyer, for his alleged involvement in the forgery mess.

Ogele, who is the National Coordinator of Ekiti Redemption Group (ERG), urged senators to begin the process of impeachment against the Senate president and his deputy, if they refuse to resign from office on account of the alleged forgery.

The ERG boss called on the people of Kwara Central Senatorial District and Enugu West Senatorial District to start the process of recalling Saraki and Ekweremadu from the Red Chamber for their alleged involvement in the forgery mess.

He explained that although the deputy Senate president is still presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law, Ogele said the forgery scam has “imposed a huge moral burden on Ekweremadu, who, he said, should know”, as well as Saraki.

Ogele added that Nigerians would never accept the leadership of the Senate by Saraki and Ekweremadu, whom he accused of bringing the integrity of the institution they represent into ridicule and odium on Nigeria.

He warned pro-Saraki senators against “trying to defend the indefensible”, warning that Nigerians would be forced to march on the National Assembly and occupy the place, if the Senate president and his deputy remain adamant despite the weight of allegation against them.

July 27, 2015
Why we want Saraki, Ekweremadu sacked
The seven Senators seeking the removal of Senate President Bukola Saraki and Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu by the Federal High Court, Abuja, are arguing that the inauguration of the 8th Senate based on Standing Orders 2015, was strange, irregular and unknown to the Red chamber.

Senators Abu Ibrahim, Barnabas Gemade, Ahmad Lawan, George Akume, Kabir Marafa, Suleiman Hunkuyi and Gbenga Ashafa are also insisting that the subsequent conduct of business and proceedings in the Senate on June 9,2015 were similarly out of place.

They are, therefore, asking the court to declare Standing Order 2015 (as amended) as illegal, null and void.

The plaintiffs in their suit said that since the election of Saraki and Ekweremadu on June 9 was based on the faulty Standing Orders 2015, there was no way they could remain in office.

They are seeking the following reliefs:

“A declaration that the Senate Standing Orders 2015 as amended is inoperative, void and lack of legislative competency for having not been made by due process of law in accordance with the provision of Section 60 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended) and Order 110 of the Standing Orders of the Senate 2007(as amended).

“A declaration that the Senate Standing Order 2015(as amended) is unconstitutional and ultra vires and the maker(s) for violating the provisions of Section 60 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999(as amended) as well as Order 110 Standing Order of the 2007(as amended) made pursuant to the said Section 60 of the Constitution.

“A declaration that the Standing Orders of the Senate 2007(as amended) is the extant Order of the Senate having not been altered and or amended in accordance with the due process of law.

“An order of court annulling and voiding all legislative business or businesses carried out by the 8th Senate predicated on the use of the said Senate Standing Orders 2015 (as amended).

“An order of injunction restraining the defendants by themselves, agents, servants and privies from using the Senate Standing Orders 2015 and or refusing to use the Standing Orders of the Senate 2007 (as amended).”

The affected Senators urged the Court to ask the Clerk to the National Assembly, the President of the Senate to explain when the Senate Standing Orders was amended.

They said paragraph 110 of the Senate Standing Orders 2007 (as amended) was explicit on the procedures for an amendment to the Orders.

They said: “For ease of reference, the procedures are set out below: “110(1) Any Senator desiring to amend any part of the rules or adding any new clause shall give notice of such amendments in writing to the President of the Senate giving details of the proposed amendments.

“The President of the Senate shall, within seven working days of the receipt of the notice, cause the amendments to be printed and circulated to members. Thereafter, it shall be printed in the Order Paper of the Senate.

“The Mover or Movers of the amendments shall be allowed to explain in detail the proposed amendments. Thereafter, the Senate shall decide by simple majority votes whether the amendments should be considered or rejected.

“If the decision is to consider the amendments, then another date shall be set aside by the Rules and Business Committee whereby opportunity would be given to Senators to further propose amendments but must strictly be confined to the original amendments.

“Two-third majority shall decide the amendments and such amendments shall form part of the rules of the Senate.”

The aggrieved Senators asked the court to determine five issues including the determination of the fact that the Senate Standing Orders 2015 was “strange, manipulated and illegal.”
- Whether in the light of the provision of Section 60 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999(as amended) which donated power to the Senate to regulate its procedure, donates or confers on any other body or authority power to amend the Senate Standing Orders 2007 the extant Standing Order (as amended) contrary to or in clear violation of Order 110 Standing Order 2007(as amended).
- Whether in the light of provision of Section 60, Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended) Senate Standing Orders 2015 as amended which was and still being used by the 8th Senate is not invalid for violating the provisions of Order 110 of the Standing Orders of the Senate 2007 (as amended) made pursuant to the said Section 60 of the said Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended).
- Whether in the light of the combined effect of Section 60 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999(as amended) and Order 110 Standing Order of the Senate 2007(as amended) the Senate Standing Orders 2015(as amended) is not unconstitutional, unlawful, and ultra vires the maker or makers and consequently null and void.
- Whether in light of all of the above, all parliamentary business of the 8th Senate predicated and conducted with the use of the Senate Standing Orders 2015(as amended) is not unlawful, illegal, ultra vires, null and void.
- Whether all proceedings conducted with the use of the Standing Orders of the Senate 2015 (as amended) are invalid and illegal having not been made pursuant to the Standing Orders of the Senate 2007 (as amended) which was in use by the 7th Senate and remained the extant Rules of the 8th Senate having not been amended.
No date has been fixed for the hearing of the suit which was filed yesterday on behalf of the plaintiffs by Chief Anthony A. Adeniyi; Ibrahim Muhammed Sani; Adetunji Oso; I. K. Olarenwaju; Umar Abdulhameed; Rotimi Olorunfemi; Alabi Lawal; S. B. Oladeinde; K. Kokowei; and Kester Oyibo.

The courts are currently on vacation, but the lead counsel, Chief Anthony Adefuye, has filed an affidavit of urgency to enable a vacation judge to take charge.
July 25, 2015
‘Saraki, Ekweremadu’s elections are a nullity’
Frontline lawyer and rights activist Jiti Ogunye examines the crisis at the National Assembly. His opinion: the election of Senate President Bukola Saraki and Deputy Senate President Ibe Ekweremadu should not stand.

For example, a judgment that is given without jurisdiction, or a judgment which is a nullity, which is liable to be set aside, cannot give birth to a good execution. It does not even matter that the Judgment sought to be set aside has been executed. In such a situation, both the judgment that is liable to be set aside and the execution that is predicated thereon will suffer the same fate. The oft-cited dictum of Lord Denning in the case of Macfoy v. U.A.C. Ltd (1961) 3 W.L.R. 1405 at p. 1409 P1] comes to mind here. He said: “any purported exercise of any function being without any legal or constitutional authority was null and void and of no effect.

If an act is void, then it is in law a nullity. It is not only bad but incurably bad. There is no need for an order of the court to set it aside. It is automatically null and void without much ado, though it is sometimes convenient to have the court declare it to be so. And every proceeding, which is founded on it, is also bad and incurably bad. You cannot put something on nothing and expect it to stay there. It will collapse.”

Thus, it does not matter that following the purported election of Saraki and Ekweremadu, they were subsequently sworn in and they later administered the oath to the other senators. All that is a grandiose nullity. And also it does not matter that following that farce of an election Senators Saraki and Ekweremade have been receiving courtesy visitors, including the Nigerian Bar Association Leadership ( a big shame!) and some funny civil society elections monitors. This sham of an election is incurably defective, and cannot be cured by this ineffectual showmanship. .

Also, it does no matter that the APC and the APC Presidency have accepted the sham election in the Senate as a successful coup d’état. They said “ a somewhat constitutional process has taken place” and that they are ready to live with it. No sirs. You are wrong. There can be no equivocation on the critical question of whether an act in constitutional or not. If politicians prevaricate, the law does not. It is either a constitutional process has taken place or it has not taken place. An unconstitutional act cannot become “somewhat constitutional” because of the disposition to condone and accommodate such an act, based on political expediency or naïveté .

It is thus our submission that consequently, any Nigerian, be he a senator or not who is affected by that election and is aggrieved has a right under Section 6(6)(b) of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, to invoke the Court’s power of judicial review and the Court is empowered ex debito justitiae to nullify the purported election. Mercifully, before his glorious transition, Chief Gani Fawehinmi, SAN & SAM, of blessed memory had helped in liberalizing the anti-public interest litigation rigidity of the legal principle of locus standi ( standing or capacity to sue).

Secondly, even if the election in the Senate had been conducted on the basis of the Senate Standing Orders, 2011, it still would have been flawed, for not following the due process and for lack of compliance with the provisions of the Senate Standing Orders, 2011.

Order 2 ( Rules 1-3) in Chapter II of the Senate Orders, 2011, provides for the first sitting of the Senate as follows: “on the first sitting of a new Senate, pursuant to the proclamation of the first sitting of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Senators-Elect shall assemble at the time and place so appointed; ( 2) Senators-elect, having assembled, the Clerk to the National Assembly shall: (a) read the proclamation for the holding of the first session of the Senate; ( b) call the Senate to order, and proceed to the roll call and confirmation of writs of election as well as declaration of assets and liabilities of the Senators- Elect in alphabetical order; and ( c) after the roll call, but before their swearing in, preside over the election of the President and Deputy President of the Senate; ( 3) each Senator Elect called shall present the writ of election and the receipt for declaration of assets and liabilities which shall be laid upon the table by the Clerk.”

The above stated procedure for convocation and inauguration of the Senate was not complied with on the 9th of June, 2015, when the election purportedly took place. All the senators-elect did not assemble before the Clerk and his cohorts committed their grand fraud. It is after the senators-elect ( not 57 or 75 of them, but all of them, save those who may be unavoidably absent, for example in the case of death, illness, detention in police or prison custody, or deliberate, clear and willful abstention from or boycott of the inauguration) had fully assembled that the Clerk can legally proceed to read the proclamation. By reading the proclamation to a half empty Senate Chambers, the Clerk willfully committed an act of illegality. But this is not the only procedural error knowingly committed by the Clerk on that date. Upon reading the proclamation to a Senate Chamber that was half empty, the Clerk persisted in his aberration by not proceeding to the roll call and confirming the writs of election as well as declaration of assets and liabilities of the Senators- Elect ( again, we posit, not 57 or 74 of them, but all of them, save those who may be unavoidably absent, for example in the case of death, illness , detention in police or prison custody, or deliberate, clear and willful abstention from or boycott of the inauguration) in alphabetical order. The Rules say each Senator Elect called shall present the writ of election and the receipt for declaration of assets and liabilities which shall be laid upon the table by the Clerk. Being part of a conspiracy to foist a fait accompli on the absent senators, the Clerk was in a hurry to consummate an infamy.

We submit that having failed or refused to comply with the Senate Rules contained in Order 2 ( Rules 1-3) in Chapter II of the Senate Orders, 2011, the condition precedent to the election of the senate president and deputy senate president was not satisfied , and thus all the steps taken thereafter, including nominations, acceptance of nominations, declaration as being elected unopposed, voting, conducting the president-elect to the chair of the Senate President, administering of oaths, all are a nullity.

To the rabblerousing defenders of the illegality that took place in the Senate Chambers on that day who are contending that a quorum was formed to constitute the leadership of the Senate with 57 Senators, and later 75 Senators being in attendance, we say that you are wrong.

These rabble-rousers bandy, in isolation, Order 10 (1) of the Senate Standing Orders ( Quorum) to justify their contention that there was a quorum to elect the Senate leadership. But Order 10 ( Rules 1, 2 and 3) of the Senate Standing Orders, 2011 provide thus: “(1) The quorum of the Senate shall be one-third ( 1/3) of members of the Senate; ( 2) if, at any time during the daily sessions of the Senate, a question is raised by any senator as to the presence of a quorum, the presiding officer shall within 15 minutes forthwith, direct the Clerk to call the roll and announce the result and these proceedings shall be without debate; ( 3) whenever after such roll call, it shall be ascertained that a quorum is not present, the President of the Senate may direct Sergeant at arms to request and, when necessary, to compel the attendance of the absent senators, which order shall be determined without debate; and pending its execution, and until a quorum shall be present, no debate nor motion except to adjourn or to suspend sitting shall be in order”

Section 54 of the Constitution also provides more forcefully in subsections 1-4 as follows: “(1) the quorum of the Senate or of the House of Representatives shall be one-third of all the members of the Legislative House concerned. “; “(2) the quorum of a joint sitting of both the Senate or of the House of Representatives shall be one-third of all the members of both Houses.”; “(3) If objection is taken by any member of the Senate or the House of Representatives present that there are present in the House of which he is a member (besides the person presiding) fewer than one-third of all the members of that House and that it is not competent for the House to transact business, and after such interval as may be prescribed in the rules of procedure of the House, the person presiding ascertains that the number of members present is still less than one-third of all the members of the House he shall adjourn the House.”; and “ (4) The foregoing provisions of this section shall apply in relation to a joint sitting of both Houses of the National Assembly as they apply in relation to a House of the National Assembly as if references to the Senate or the House of Representatives and a member of either Houses are references to both Houses and to any member of the National Assembly, respectively.”

When the provisions of Order 10 ( 1-3) of the Senate Standing Orders and the above-cited provisions of the Constitution are properly read and construed, it becomes clear that those provisions do not apply to the first sitting of the Senate, and in particular the election of presiding officers of the Senate. They do not. In constituting the leadership of the Senate, all senators-elect not only have the right to contest in the election, but they also have the right to participate in the election. They have the right to vote and be voted for. Therefore, none of them can be excluded, based on the forced application of the “one-third ( 1/3) of members of the Senate” quorum clause. The quorum clause applies to the ordinary sitting ( or daily sessions) of the Senate, its committees or its joint sitting with the House of Representatives. It does not apply to the first sitting of the Senate, which, in the context of the Senate Standing Orders, is not a sitting, properly so called. At the inaugural first “sitting” of the Senate, all senators-elect are expected to assemble and participate in the election. Not one-third of them.

A sitting of the Senate, to which “one-third ( 1/3) of members of the Senate” quorum clause applies can only start or take place after the first “sitting” of the Senate, that is after the election of the Senate’s presiding officers, and not before. The Senate cannot sit without presiding officers. A court cannot sit without a judge or panel of judges presiding. Gathering to elect a leadership of the Senate may be a meeting or an assembly, but certainly not a sitting.

Order 5 of the Senate Standing Orders provides that after their respective elections, “the President and Deputy President of the Senate shall take and subscribe to the oath/ affirmation of allegiance and membership prescribed in the Constitution before the Clerk to the National Assembly”. Order 6 of the Senate Standing Orders provides that “ having been sworn, the President of the Senate returns his acknowledgment to the Senate for the honours confirmed upon him, thereupon takes the Chair, and then the mace ( which hitherto lay under the table shall be laid upon the table).” Order 8 of the Senate Standing Orders provides that “ every senate elect shall, before taking his seat, take and subscribe to the oath/ affirmation of allegiance and membership prescribed in the 7th Schedule to the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, before the President of the Senate.” And Order11 ( contained in Chapter III-Sittings of the Senate) of the Senate Standing Orders provides that “(1) the President of the Senate shall allocate a seat to each senator; and ( 2) a senator may only speak from a seat allocated to him, provided that the President of the Senate may change the allocation from time to time”

In the same vein, and foundationally, Section 52. (1) of the Constitution of Nigeria provides that “every member of the Senate or the House of Representatives shall, before taking his seat, declare his assets and liabilities as prescribed in this Constitution and subsequently take and subscribe the Oath of Allegiance and the oath of membership as prescribed in the Seventh Schedule to this Constitution before the President of the Senate or, as the case may be, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, but a member may before taking the oaths take part in the election of a President and a Deputy President of the Senate, as the case may be, or a Speaker and a Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives.

Section 52(2) of the Constitution provides that “the President and Deputy President of the Senate and the Speaker and the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representative shall declare their assets and liabilities as prescribed in this Constitution and subsequently take and subscribe the Oath of Allegiance and the oath of membership prescribed as aforesaid before the Clerk of the National Assembly.” And Section 53. (1)(a) of the Constitution provides that “ at any sitting of the National Assembly – (a) in the case of the Senate, the President of the Senate shall preside, and in his absence the Deputy President shall preside;”

Reading these orders and cited provisions of Sections 52 and 53 of the Constitution together, in relation to the “one-third ( 1/3) of members of the Senate” quorum clause, it should be very clear, even to the dull and unintelligent, that until the President and Deputy Senate President are sworn, take the Chair, the Mace of the Senate is laid on the table, every senator-elect is sworn and takes his seat, and the President of the Senate allocates a seat to each Senator, there can be no sitting or session of the Senate to which the “one-third ( 1/3) of members of the Senate” quorum clause can apply.
- To be continued
July 24, 2015
‘Saraki, Ekweremadu’s elections are a nullity’

Frontline lawyer and rights activist Jiti Ogunye examines the crisis at the National Assembly. His opinion: the election of Senate President Bukola Saraki and Deputy Senate President Ibe Ekweremadu should not stand.

Since the National Assembly (NA) erupted in crisis during the “inauguration” of the 8th NA and the “election” of the leadership of the Senate and House of Representatives on Tuesday, the 9th of June, 2015, a lot has been said and written about the issues in dispute in the crisis. Unfortunately, rather than subject the “election” in the NA, in particular in the Senate, on that day, to a rigorous legal examination, in order to determine the legality of that election, many of the principal actors in the NA leadership crisis or in the All Progressives Congress.

Since the National Assembly (NA) erupted in crisis during the “inauguration” of the 8th NA and the “election” of the leadership of the Senate and House of Representatives on Tuesday, the 9th of June, 2015, a lot has been said and written about the issues in dispute in the crisis. Unfortunately, rather than subject the “election” in the NA, in particular in the Senate, on that day, to a rigorous legal examination, in order to determine the legality of that election, many of the principal actors in the NA leadership crisis or in the All Progressives Congress (APC) imbroglio, and a host of other interveners have been discussing the politics of the crisis and its “mishandling” by the APC leadership, who, according to these interveners, was hell bent on foisting a leadership on the NA. Many simple-minded gloaters have even reduced the serious issues thrown up by the crisis to a celebration of the “ political defeat of Bola Ahmed Tinubu”, as if that alleged defeat was all that was needed to make the aberration that occurred in the NA acceptable. In this intervention, we seek to redirect the discourse. We argue that the NA leadership crisis primarily should be discussed and resolved on the basis of enquiries as to whether there had been a violation of the rule of law and the provisions of the Constitution.

What transpired in the NA on Tuesday, 9th June, 2015 was a coup d’état. If it was merely a coup d’état by the treacherous members of the APC against their party’s choices for the offices that constitute the leadership of the NA, we would not have been bothered. We are bothered because it was also a coup d’état against the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, and the rule of law.

On that day, while Senator Bukola Saraki of the APC, who has confessed that, like a typical coup d’état leader, he sneaked into the premises of the NA at dawn, was “elected unopposed” as the Senate President, by 57 Senators, in the absence of 51 Senators, who were “ambushed” into a fence-mending and ranks-closing meeting that eventually turned out to be a hoax, Senator Ike Ekweremadu of the People Democratic Party ( PDP) “defeated” his opponent, Senator Ali Ndume of the APC by 50 votes to 24 votes ( with one abstention) to clinch the post of the Deputy Senate President. Instructively, the APC controls the Senate with 59 ( now 58) Senators, while the PDP has 49 Senators, meaning that 108 members ought to have congregated on the Senate Floor on the said date to constitute the leadership of the Senate. Alas, only 57 senators and 75 senators took part in the elections into the two offices.

In the run up to the “inauguration” of the NA on 9th of June, 2015, after the initial intra-party horse-trading and compromises, two blocs within the APC, keenly interested in fielding candidates and contesting available positions in the NA leadership, had emerged: The offices are that of the Senate President, Deputy Senate President, Speaker of House of Representatives and Deputy Speaker of House of Representatives. For the House of Representatives, there was the Femi Gbajabiamila and Yakubu Dogara Blocks, and for the Senate, there were the Bukola Saraki and Ahmed Lawan Blocks. To put its house in order, the APC, correctly and responsibly, in our view, conducted a straw poll amongst her elected legislators to determine the popularity and acceptability of the aspirants and adopt consensus candidates of the party for the positions. It would not have made any sense for the APC to have allowed its aspirant members to go on the floors of the Senate and the House to slugger it out amongst themselves. That is not the way a responsible party behaves. Strangely, some dubious partisans and jaundiced interveners have condemned the APC for striving to forge consensuses amongst its party members, insisting that the NA should have been left alone to self-constitute its leadership, without the input of the parties of the respective members. This position that is being laundered as the correct approach that ought to have been adopted by the APC in order to guarantee the independence of the legislature is ignorant, plain dumb and silly. At the end of the straw poll, which the Saraki and Dogara blocs boycotted and walked out of, obviously because they were in the minority and because they did not want the decision of the majority to bind them, the Lawan and Gbajabiamila Blocks emerged victorious. Consequently, the APC directed all its legislators that were to participate in the NA Leadership Elections to tow the party line and vote for the party’s candidates in the elections.

Upon realising that they did not command the following of a majority of their party members, the Saraki and Dogara blocks surreptitiously hatched a conspiracy against their party’s interest and forged a coalition with the PDP against their party choices That coalition led to the “defeat” of the APC choices in the elections, and the triumphs of the Saraki and Dogara Blocks. In the House of Representatives leadership election, Dogara scored 182 votes to Gbajabiamila’s 174 votes. Given the result of the election, it was obvious that out of the 209 APC legislators in the House, about 36 of them leagued up with PDP legislators to defeat Gbajabiamila, their “party’s” candidate for the office of the speaker, and Monguno, their party’s candidate for the office of the Deputy Speaker. Saraki, Dogara, and Lasun, all defectors from the PDP, simply reached out to their kith and kin in the PDP. And it only took the infusion of Ekweremadu for the family reunion to be complete. Blood, as we know, is always thicker than water. It was an act of gross betrayal and misconduct.

Was that act of betrayal illegal or unconstitutional? No, even if it is immoral. Section 50 (1) of the Constitution says so. It provides that “ there shall be:- (a) a President and a Deputy President of the Senate, who shall be elected by the members of that House from among themselves; and (b) a Speaker and a Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, who shall be elected by the members of that House from among themselves”. By virtue of this provision, any member of the Senate or House of Representatives, be s/he of the majority party or minority party can be elected into any of the aforementioned positions, in so far as he or she is a member of the Senate or House of Representatives. It only stands to reason that if any legislator, regardless of the numerical strength of his party, can aspire to a leadership position in the upper and lower chambers, he or she can draw his electors from his own party or from other parties in the legislature. And any member can elect any other member of his choice to occupy any of the said positions, regardless of political party affinity or divide.

Without any doubt, the leadership tussle in the NA has shown clearly the fault lines in Section 50 (1) of the Constitution. Section 50(1) needs an urgent amendment, such that the indubitable legislative intendment of having a majority party constitute the leadership of the parliament, while the minorities parties play the role of the parliamentary opposition can become more manifest and taken out of its current state of wooliness.

We have argued that the act of betrayal of the APC insurgents is not illegal or unconstitutional, but immoral. But do we all not know that immorality, lack of integrity, opportunism and perennial power and money hunting are the hallmarks of a majority of Nigerian politicians? Lacking in scruples, values, principles and ideology, they change political parties, switch political allegiances and positions on any matter, based on their whims, caprices, political calculations and expectations, and pecuniary interests. Most of them are nothing but charlatans and political mercenaries. Lacking shame, noble comportment and decorum, but fixated on grabbing power for primitive accumulation and self aggrandizement, they do not mind dumping a “ national conscience party”, “a national salvation congress”, or people redemption movement” for “ a kidnappers party of Nigeria”, or “congress of Nigerian armed robbers “, regardless of the repugnance of such names, if the platforms give them an assurance of a short cut to power, and a shorter and surer route to the public till.

The APC that is now talking about party loyalty and supremacy, and is bellyaching about the treachery of the renegades within her ranks reeks of the vice of political prostitution, which usually is masked as patriotic expediency, political pragmatism, and free exercise of the constitutionally guaranteed right to freedom of association. We are, therefore, not concerned about the moral wrong that the APC has suffered in the hands of her saboteur members, who, apparently fled a leprous PDP into the APC in the belief that staying back in the PDP in the 2015 general elections was going to harm their ambitions to get elected or re-elected into political offices. It was a mutation from one party to the other for political survival. It was “change”, indeed.

As we have stated above, we are bothered because the events of 9th of June, 2015 have serious implications for Nigeria’s democracy, constitutionalism and the rule of law.

It is our considered view that the election of Bukola Saraki as the Senate President and Ike Ekweremadu as Deputy Senate President is illegal, unconstitutional, null and void. It is a sham. Put in another way, Bukola Saraki and Ekweremadu, are not, legally speaking, the Senate President and Deputy Senate President of Nigeria. They are impostors, who should stop parading themselves as senate president and deputy senate president. Asking Ekweremadu to yield up the office of the Deputy Senate President, as some partisans who have labeled him a PDP usurper have suggested, does not arise. De jure, he is not occupying the office of the Deputy Senate President from which he may resign. You cannot resign from an office you do not occupy. Why do we say so?

First, by their own declarations and admissions, the organizers of the sham election on the floor of the Senate on the 9th of June, principally the Clerk of the National Assembly and his cohorts, claimed that they organized that election pursuant to the Senate Standing Orders, 2015, as amended, which purportedly provided that elections into the two offices shall be by secret ballot, instead of the open ballot as provided by Orders 72 and 73 of the Senate Standing Orders, 2011. As it has now become glaring, there was, in fact, no such Senate Standing Orders, 2015. As at the time of the dissolution of the 7th National Assembly, on the 4th of June, 2015, the operative Rules of the Senate were Senate Standing Orders, 2011. Between that dissolution and the inauguration of the 8th Senate on the 9th of June, the Senate was not in existence. It was a period of interregnum. The Senate leadership of the 7th Senate went with the dissolution of that Senate. Therefore, that leadership, acting alone, or in concert with the generality of the members of the 7th Senate could not have amended the Senate Rules to produce the Senate Standing Orders, 2015. By virtue of Order 110(5) of the Senate Standing Orders, 2011, two-thirds majority of the Senate shall decide proposed amendments and such amendments shall form part of the Rules of the Senate. This purported amendment is the act of forgery that is being alleged against David Mark, Ekweremadu and the Clerk of the National Assembly, which has now become the subject of police investigation. While the crime of forgery that is alleged may lead to prosecution and conviction, if investigation establishes a prima facie case, the effect of that forged or manipulated document on the election at the Senate is stark. Being the foundation of that election, the election is rendered illegal, null and void. No senate president or deputy senate president can be elected pursuant to a non-existent or forged Senate Standing Orders.

In underscoring the nullity of the Saraki and Ekweremadu’s presidency and deputy presidency, we find it very apt to use the analogy of a familiar legal principle.

“A court can only be competent, if among other things, all the conditions precedent for its having jurisdiction are fulfilled. In Madukolu and Ors. v. Nkemdilim (1962) 1 All N.L.R. (Pt.4) 587 at 594 Bairamian, F. J, (as he then was) stated the principles which , ever since, have been accepted in successive cases in the Supreme Court of Nigeria. ‘A court is competent, he said, ‘when- (1)it is properly constituted as regards numbers and qualifications of the members of the bench, and no member is disqualified for one reason or another; (2) the subject matter of the case is within its jurisdiction, and there is no feature in the case which prevents the court from exercising its jurisdiction; and (3) the case comes before the court initiated by due process of law, and upon fulfillment of any condition precedent to the exercise of jurisdiction. Any defect in competence is fatal, for the proceedings are a nullity however well conducted and decided; the defect being extrinsic to the adjudication.’ See Skenconsult(Mg.)Ltd, &Anor. v. Ukey (l98l) 1 SC 6 at 15

• To be continued

July 23, 2015
‘Why Ekweremadu must go’

Imo State All Progressives Congress (APC) chieftain Chief Kingslee Okafor, in this interview with JOHN OFIKHENUA, speaks about the National Assembly crisis. He contends that the best option for Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu is to resign.

What does it really take to be in the opposition in a state like Imo or in the South-East?

It takes a lot of nerves to be in the opposition. We have been in the opposition in the last 11 to 12 years. I had been a constant member of the opposition, and we guided the politics to the point where we took over governance. And I can tell you it is tough. If you are in politics not for the bread and butter, if you are in politics for the common man, if you are in politics for the dividends that will accrue to the generality of the masses, then you should be focused on the policies of government, not just for what you can get in your pocket. So, it was tough in the opposition. We were able to cope. That is why we ask PDP to put their house in order and remain in opposition so that they can actually shape the governance because any government without opposition will be a monarchy , or a dictatorial government where you just do what you like and you don’t care about what the people feel. So we were in the opposition and we remained steadfast and we were able to take over governance and we are trying to change the situation in Nigeria.

Which ordeal did you have while you were in the opposition? What were the nasty experiences that you had, which you could share with me?

We had situations in government where things were going wrong but we couldn’t do anything. We could only speak and most times speak to the people in government and they did not care about what the masses wanted. You know the PDP what they have always been like. At some points we had to challenge the policies of government and then we were limited in what we could do. Sometimes the policies and agenda of government were not people -oriented, they were not mass -oriented , and we challenged them and most times we didn’t get results because we were facing a government that didn’t care about the masses. That is the experience we had with the PDP in particular.

Being part of one of the legacy parties that merged into APC, may I know why you subscribed to the party since some members could choose their own ways?

If you go through my antecedents from when I came back to Nigeria, we started with the RMDD, from RMDD to Action Congress, from Action Congress of Democrats and from ACD to Action Congress of Nigeria, we have had this progressive leaning that has always shape my political alignment. And in all my years in politics I have always been a progressive because we always have the feelings of the masses in mind in every policy, in every political agenda or in every step we take politically . So, it came naturally for me to be a member of ACN to APC because APC is an offshoot, an amalgamation of the progressives in Nigeria judging from ACD to ACN, ANPP and CPC to where we are now . It is an assemblage of people of like minds, and we are politicking today and we are going to get there.

When you opted to form the National Progressives Coalition, what did you really have in mind?

We had in mind the situation of the common man. We had in mind the progress of the masses. We had in mind better roads. We had in mind better opportunities for our youths. We had in mind employment. We had in mind to develop the country to be at par with nations of the world. We had in mind whatever it takes to run a country that is humanly possible for human beings to habit. We had in mind better hospitals. We had in mind qualitative education for our youths. We had in mind everything that other nations that had develop have. We had in mind good airports. We had in mind better healthcare . We had in mind good roads, infrastructure . We had in mind power. We had in mind security for our people. These are the things we had in mind.

During electioneering campaign, how far did your coalition go in Nigeria?

Well, it was obvious and everything we did was in the open. The coalition was of the CPC, the new PDP, the ANPP, and a faction of the APGA. It was clear and everybody knew what we were doing from the point that the amalgamation came together from the point we went for registration . We had all kinds of obstacles on the way, which we overcame. We have people who are praying for us to have them because we had a virile opposition that was able to check the behemoth that was the PDP as at that time. They were running wild in whatever they were trying to do. They did all kinds of impunity but this is a party that doesn’t care about where you come from so long as you have the money they give you the ticket. People could could come from wherever to the PDP as far as you have the godfathers they stay in their bedrooms and write lists but in APC everybody witnessed the primaries we had in Lagos at the convention where President Muhammadu Buhari won and before the results were announced former Vice President Atiku Abubakar congratulated him. So also Kwankwoso and the rest of them. So, it was a very opened primaries we had, it was a very open political Programme we had . It was clear that we were focused. Indeed, we were ready for governance.

How many people share the idea of the National Progressives Coalition; how many members do you have?

National Progressives Coalition is more like a support group in APC. We started after the amalgamation of the parties. After APC was formed like minds started coming together. Presently they are over five million membership. It is not a political party, it is a support group in APC and the agenda is to make sure that we shape government policies. We direct people in government to be able to focus on the policies that are human-faced for the masses. And then also to make sure that the party is integrated in the whole six geo-political zones. We want to make sure that the APC is embedded in the hands and minds of everybody in Nigeria: North East, North Central, North West, South East and South West, and that is exactly where we are today. And by the grace of God, I happened to be the national coordinator . We have offices in all the Local Governments in Nigeria. And today I can tell you that NAPCO is more like the purgatory for those who want to join APC. If you come to NAPCO we look at you and we make sure you are purged of all your sins. Some of them who came from PDP we clear them of all their sins before they can join the APC.

Would you say that the high hope that heralded the election has been lost or it is still realisable?

From the appointment of the Service Chiefs you could see that we are focused. You could see that the rot the PDP left in Nigeria was too deep that it needed an articulate and clear-headed President like Muhammadu Buhari to take us to where we are going. People seem to be in a hurry for us to make mistakes but we are not going to rush into mistakes. We are going to be careful and we are going to take Nigerians to where they should be. If you look at the appointment that was announced yesterday you could see we have a clear idea of where we are heading to. And there is no way we will make mistakes as we are not going to be rushed into making mistakes. If anybody says Mr. President is slow, I think the person does not understand what governance is all about. We are quietly and gradually putting all the architectures together to make sure that we have a country that is virile enough that can stand the test of time.

Some analysts are aggrieved that the economy is still adrift even a month after President Buhari tookover government in such a manner that the Naira is depreciating in a hurry. What do you say to this?

Well the factors that surround the Naira are global factors. And we all know that today the whole world is facing a downturn in economic and all that. The price of oil is going down and that is why we are trying to diversify the economy. We want to be more Agro- based so that we can stand the shortfall that we will be getting in the oil industry. Nigeria is more or less a country that is mono-dependent on oil and we are trying to change all that. He can’t do much in one month and I believe that Nigerians who voted for change will also have the mindset to understand that it takes a little while. Everything that comes good usually first of all gets tough before it gets good and as far as I am concerned there is light at the end of the tunnel. And we cannot be rushed into any mistakes. We cannot expect the President to hire and fire overnight. We need to quietly go through this to make sure we make el dorado in time but not in a hurry.

What economic options would you suggest for diversification of the economy if Mr. President is to seek your advice on diversification of the economy?

Well, the president already has enough advice. Remember that the committee that was setup before inauguration had everything encapsulated. We are going to diversify the economy from oil to agriculture. Nigeria has a lot of human resources and we are going to tap into all that. And we cannot do without going back to agriculture. Most countries that don’t have oil are doing well globally based on agriculture. Agriculture is the main thing we are going to go into. Mr. President knows very well that we are going to do that. We have a lot of resources that are untapped. There is no state in Nigeria that does not have endowment from God. And we are going to make sure that all the resources are tapped into for the benefit of common good.

What is your advice for Nigerians?

My advice is for Nigerians to be patient with Mr. President and for them to understand that we are coming from a very deep rot. That the last regime took Nigeria far beyond this time. If you notice today the money that has been released by the by Mr. President, the intervention fund that he released to the states came from the liquified natural gas funds and taxes that they paid. And you can imagine that this money had not been paid to the federal coffers in the past. NNPC needs to be fully overhauled. There has to be a reengineering of the oil sector. There has to be promotion and serious investment in the gas industry because we have more of gas in Nigeria than we even have petroleum. So the future of Nigeria is very bright. All we need is the President that understands the terrain like President Muhammadu Buhari. And Nigerians will never regret voting for change.

Some political analysts are of the opinion that APC would have performed better as an opposition party than being the ruling party as it is now, especially in view of the fact that it could not manage the National Assembly crisis. What do you say to this?

I can tell you that there is no crisis in the National Assembly. Everything is all about politics. Politics is all about human-beings trying to get into one position or the other. You don’t leave a vacuum in government and that is an opinion that will be shared by the PDP but I think the best thing for them is to undertake to go on a course. I will recommend Lai Mohammed to organize workshops for them to be able to know how to run opposition. We had been in this long ago and we know how it is run. But you don’t expect PDP to see anything good in what we do. You don’t beat a baby and expect him not to cry. Let PDP cry for sometimes. In the next six months or one year, people will get tired of hearing their watery opposition and then government will move on. Today as far as I am concerned there is no problem in the National Assembly. It is going to crystallize and you don’t expect that in a government, where there are sound-minded people for things to go like that. Otherwise why do people go to school? Why do people get involved in politics. This is politics and we are going to come out good from whatever is going on in the National Assembly today. There is no problem at all.

Do you see it as an anomaly for a PDP member being the Deputy Senate President of this country while APC is in the majority in the Senate?

Yes, I am one of those that have asked Senator Ekweremadu to step down immediately. I am not asking him to step down because he is a PDP member, but because of the colossal failure he has been identified with. There is nothing he can claim that he has done for even his people from the Southeast zone. It has been wasted eight years for the people of the South East zone. Today the Southeast cannot boast of good roads, when he was in a government that is complaint with his party. The Southeast cannot boast of the second Niger bridge when Ekweremadu was close to the president that was of the same party with him. And today you can imagine the level he has left the Southeast. All he has done is acquire much personal wealth to the detriment of the Southeast people. You cannot give what you don’t have. You can’t do the same thing over and over and expect a different result. That is what Albert Einstein. said. As a matter of fact it is the same Albert Einstein that said that those that are privileged to know must have the duty to act. So if we know and we cannot speak, and we know and we cannot act, then it means we are redundant. Ekweremadu has been privileged to know but he doesn’t have the duty to act. Therefore, he should step down immediately. And we have said it unequivocally that he should step down from that position and let another person from the Southeast take that position. It is not even a matter of the party he comes from . It is even to me an anomaly for him to sit in that position if he has moral latitude. If he has morals he should step down from that position.

Do you mean that he should step down for another Senator from the Southeast to continue?

Yes! It looks as if it’s been zoned to the Southeast and if he steps down we have other ranking Senators from the Southeast who should be able to take that position.

Don’t you see it as a position which he (Ekweremadu) has acquired with his ingenuity and smartness?

I don’t see any ingenuity in him. If the ingenuity does not attract dividends of democracy to your people, ingenuity that could not create a state for the Southeast zone, ingenuity that cannot help in building the second Niger bridge, I don’t see any ingenuity in that. Ingenuity of failure, that is what it is. And I don’t think I can ascribe to anything in-genuine about him. All he has done is amass so much wealth in the last eight year. And then he wasted the colossal time of the Southeastern people . We will make that seat so hot for him that he will step down.

In the next few weeks how far will you go in opposition to his continue stay in office?

We are going to continue. Today, we are concluding for an arrangement for a demonstration in New York. There will be another one in Washington by next week. When the president is in America our group will be protesting against him (Ekweremadu). And we will make sure that the Southeastern people who do not understand the politics of his sitting there come to understand that. He is going to vacate that position and we will make it hot for him to operate. It is going to be a superior argument that we are going to present to make sure we enlighten the people about the need for him to step down from that position.

You seem to be a man of so many parts. How do you manage business with politics?

Well politics is business, business is politics. But for me I am not in politics because of what I can make from it that is why most people in politics do not have any business. I have a business that I am running and I create time also to be involved in politics because I know my agenda. I always believe that politics should be left for those who have businesses, who have things to do, people who are professionals. I don’t think I have problem managing my business and politics. I create time for all of this.

What do you deal in?

I am into properties. I do car armory, I do exotic cars as well. I also promote arts. I organize exhibitions. I read arts and we have always promoted exhibitions, and we have done that over the years in America and in Europe.

Will you bring that to bear in your country Nigeria ? Are you into art promotion?

No, I am an artist in business. So, I am focused on the business side of art. We have had exhibition in Europe and America and also parts of Africa and in Nigeria for youths, for artists who are up and coming. And we have cultural promotion, arts programmes towards this also. We are doing it already in Nigeria. We have done a few exhibitions in Lagos, most art collectors know me and they know what we do. But art is more of a business that is not in everybody’s purview. It is for those who have the interest and all that. And we encourage our younger ones to grow in art.

Is it performing art or visual art?

It is visual art

Being a knight of Saint John shows that you still have time for God despite your busy time for politics and business. So, which time do you have for God ? How do you make out time?

Whatever I do, my day must start with a service in the church. I wake up five in the morning, I go for jugging and 5.45, I must go for morning mass. I cannot start my day without going before the blessed sacrament. I am a core Catholic. I am a knight of St. John International and I cannot start my day without having to go to church in the morning. It makes my day easy, and that is why I don’t run into obstacles most of the times in my life. So, I am focused on God and I cannot compromise that.

Do you have any regret that the administration you voted into power is trying your former state governor Ikedi Ohakim?

Ikedi Ohakim was of PDP. He is my personal friend. If he has any issue he needs to trash it out with the EFCC. I don’t know anything about his case and I am not part of the EFCC. But I know I have seen him on TV answering some questions and his lawyers have secured him bail. So, I think that matter is being handled at the right quarters. I don’t think I am competent enough to comment on that.

There are some analysts who are saying that the appointments that President Buhari has made so far are lopsided. What do you say to this?

It is still the same voice of PDP talking. The President is going to make over 600 appointments . The appointments he has made already you can count on your finger. How will you start analyzing the lopsidedness of appointments when the President has not even started? We are just about to start taking off. The service chiefs that have been announced you can see how balance they are. Nigerians should be looking for square pegs in square holes not round pegs in square holes. I don’t think that the idea of opposition is to criticize and challenge everything the government does. Today, the President has just announced service chiefs and everybody is happy about it. And there are more than 500 other positions that are going to be announced. So, let us wait for the President to finish all the appointments before we can say they are lopsided or not. You don’t start criticizing a journey when you have not taken off.

Ends

July 22, 2015
Ekweremadu’s ride in the storm

The contraption that produced the Saraki-Ekweremadu tango in the Senate appears to have been sealed and delivered. But echoes from the marriage, contracted on the altar of political expediency, may continue to reverberate in a long time to come. Assistant Editor, GBADE OGUNWALE writes.

Deputy President of the Senate, Ike Ekweremadu has, over the years, grown from the erstwhile rookie in 2003 when he first got elected to the upper legislative chamber to represent the Enugu West senatorial district. The turbulence and instability in the leadership of the Fourth National Assembly between 1999 and 2003 almost thrusted him into the exalted seat of the Senate President. That was when the then Senate President, Aldolphus Wabara was removed in 2005.

The Presidency, under the former President Olusegun Obasanjo, had settled for Ekweremadu as a replacement for Wabara. Leading the Presidency team was Chief Tony Anenih whose duty it was to ensure that Obasanjo’s choice of Ekweremadu carried the day. However, Anenih’s team met a stiff opposition from the senators, led by the then Deputy President of the Senate, Alhaji Ibrahim Mantu. Having apparently had enough of Obasanjo-imposed Senate Presidents who were eventually pulled down by the same forces in the Presidency, the senators decided to call Obasanjo’s bluff.

Subtle threats issued by Anenih on Obasanjo’s behalf failed to sway the “recalcitrant” senators. They had told Anenih in no unmistakable terms that they were going to pick a Senate President of their own. They dumped Ekweremadu and settled for Chief Ken Nnamani, to the consternation of Obasanjo and his minions. That was how Ekweremadu missed the chance to become the Senate President at the time.

He however regained his groove in 2007 when he became the Deputy Senate President after securing re-election. He came back to reclaim the seat in 2011 and was able to retain it till the end of the Seventh Senate that expired in June 2015.

Another opportunity came his way at the June 9, 2015 inauguration of the National Assembly where his Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) failed to secure majority seats in the upper legislative chamber. The crevices created by the wrangling among senators of the majority All Progressives Congress (APC) in the race for the Senate Presidency provided Ekweremadu the much desired opportunity to try his luck once again. Taking advantage of the crisis in the APC camp and the inordinate ambition of one of the contestants to become the Senate President, Ekweremadu had mobilised the machinery of the PDP for his own ambition. He found a willing ally in Senator Bukola Saraki who was willing to give his right arm to clinch the seat.

Cashing in on Saraki’s desperation, the PDP had offered the Kwara strongman the support of its entire 49 senators. But the backing was not free of charge. In exchange, the opposition PDP had demanded to pair Ekweremadu with Saraki to seal the deal. The deal was too tempting for Saraki to resist. And with a handful of the APC senators in his camp, in addition to 49 from the PDP, Saraki was able to swing the balance in his favour, with Ekweremadu in the tag. As events turned out, no fewer than 51 senators of the APC were outside the National Assembly complex waiting for a meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari. With all the PDP senators present at the election venue, Ekweremadu got elected as Deputy President of the Senate. He got five extra votes from APC senators to add to PDP’s 49. The rest, they say, is history.

A section of the public however said while the cap fits Ekweremadu, it is not necessarily befitting, considering the manner he procured the deal. Others argue that there was no way the PDP with its 49 senators against APC’s 60 could have given away the position without a reward. “It would have been an irreparable loss for the PDP to concede the two seats. It’s heartwarming that the PDP did not allow the opportunity to slip by. It’s politics and every political party worth its name must be able to play the game at critical moments. You may call it political iniquity if you like, but it’s a clear case of political brinkmanship”, a commentator had said.

Be it as it may, Ekweremadu is currently fighting the battle of his life after it emerged he allegedly smuggled a clause into the Senate standing rules to facilitate the emergence of Saraki as Senate President and his own re-emergence as the Deputy Senate President. Some aggrieved APC senators petitioned the police authorities, calling for investigation of the alleged involvement of the Deputy Senate President in the matter. Ekweremadu is currently being investigated by the police and may have to face the music if found culpable. The question on the lips of many for now is how long he can ride the storm.

July 18, 2015
Southeast group asks Ekweremadu to resign

IF a Southeast pressure group has its way, Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu will quit his position now.

The African League Organisation (ALO), which has asked the Deputy Senate President to resign, said any other senator from the zone should replace Ekweremadu, who it alleged has been passive in the past eight years.

The group’s call came on a day the Board of Trustees (BOT) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) backed Ekweremadu’s emergence as the Senate’s number two man in the Eighth National Assembly.

In a statement issued yesterday in Abuja, BOT Secretary Senator Walid Jibrin described Ekweremadu’s emergence as a “good omen for democracy”.

Addressing reporters in Abuja, ALO said it had written Ekweremadu to quit.

The letter reads: ”The only noble way forward is that you should immediately step aside for one out of the remaining 14 distinguished senators from the five states that make up our zone to immediately step in to accomplish our Southeast dreams.”

It was signed by Chief Kingsley Okafor of National Progressive Coalition, Mazi Sunny Chijioke of Southeast Professionals in Commerce, Sir Okay Nwaneri of Ibos in Politics, Ike Ikemefuama of Ibos in the Diaspora and Chief Anya Onyeije of African League Organisation.

Copies of the letter were forwarded to the President General, Ohanaeze-Ndi-Igbo, the Chairman, Southeast Council of Traditional Rulers, all Southeast governors and senators.

The group predicated it’s call for Ekweremadu’s resignation on his alleged failure to use the position to advance the course of the Igbos for eight years.

They said: “We are deeply worried that while our area has been sidelined and unrepresented under your leadership as the Deputy Senate President for these eight years under review, you on 9th June, 2015 assumed the same position in the 8th Senate may be for another period of four dark years. God forbid.”

According to ALO, despite Ekweremadu’s occupation of the position, unemployment, poverty and stress have been the lot of Igbo youths.

The letter further reads. “As a leader in the Senate occupying the number two seat and Chairman, Senate Committee on States Creation, with all emoluments, entitlements and paraphernalia of the exalted office pencilled for the Southeastern zone, we expect total protection, representation on the scheme of things concerning us all.

“You failed to mobilise other 14 senators from Southeast Zone and other senators from other geo-political zones to support the Southeast cause. During this period, senators from other zones ordinarily could not have led or championed our cause without your leadership.

“Unfortunately, our zone with its numerous and peculiar problems is sidelined, marginalised and abandoned to its own faith not by the Federal Government but by its own due to lack of leadership.”

“The direct effect is that our area is left un-representated by leaders like you who ride on their back to stupendous wealth with all accolades of great life, including national honours and uncountable number of chieftaincy titles within this period.”

But Ekweremadu got the support of the BOT’s, which described his emergence as the best thing to have ever happened to democracy.

Senator Jibrin, who stated the BOT position, however, denied that the BOT got N35 million for the presidential campaign. He noted that the party will be repositioned to regain power in 2019.

He also said at no time did he say the party’s National Convention will hold next month, noting that with the present situation and the fact that all the party organs were democratically elected, there was no way a National Convention could hold in August.

His words: “I never said PDP will hold National Convention in August. What I said after our last BOT meeting was that the BOT at its meeting on May 25, 2015, elected Dr. Bello as Acting Chairman for three months after which the BOT will meet to elect its substantive chairman

”Similarly, the party agreed that Uche Secondus, the current National Chairman, should equally act as National Chairman for three months to give way for the emergence of a new National Chairman from the Northeast zone in compliance with established tradition and constitutional provision.

“The current National Working Committee (NWC), states, local government councils and ward chapters have a tenure which will expire in March. The emergence of BOT chairman and national chairman after three months will prepare for a meeting of caucus, BOT, NEC and convention to elect officials.”

July 13, 2015
Insurgents’ attacks have increased, says Ekweremadu

Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu yesterday expressed concern about the resurgence of Boko Haram activities with greater intensity under President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration.

He asked the Federal Government to deal with the insurgents, no matter the cost.

Ekweremadu urged the international community, especially Nigeria’s neighbours, to support the government’s efforts at tackling the challenge.

The Deputy Senate President spoke to reporters in Abuja.

Ekweremadu did not, however, speak on the alleged unauthorised alteration of the Senate Standing Rules.

He noted that the country would not be able to make any meaningful progress without stopping Boko Haram activities.

The first task of the government, he said, should be to deal with and bring the Boko Haram insurgency under control.

Ekweremadu said: “I am worried about the resurgence of the Boko Haram activities in Nigeria. Shortly before the inauguration of the present government, the country had almost rolled back Boko Haram and its activities in every part of Nigeria – from Adamawa to Borno to Yobe.

“I was hoping that when we come back in the Eighth Assembly, that we will work with our colleagues from the Northeast to develop a plan of action that will help to rehabilitate that part of Nigeria.

“I feel so concerned about the suffering of our people from the Northeast. I had hoped that by now we would be tasking ourselves on how best to rebuild that part of Nigeria.

“Regrettably the actions of Boko Haram seem to have resurfaced now not only in Borno, they have carried out their activities also in Plateau, they have gone to Adamawa, Kaduna and Kano.

”I am worried that if nothing is done, the next target would be Abuja. Maybe they will start going to South.

“It is important for us as those in government, whether Executive or Legislature, to come together to find solutions to these problems.

“So, I will like to use this opportunity to appeal to our friends, our neighbours, and the international community to support Nigeria to ensure that we roll back the activities of Boko Haram.”

“There is no way we can have progress in the country when there are security problems.

”So, the first thing we need to do as a government is to deal with this security challenge no matter what it would cost us.

”So, I will like to sympathise with the Boko Haram victims . We believe our president would sit on top of this situation. Because we believe that Nigerians are worried about this situation and they would like to see an end to Boko Haram activities.

“So, we would like to do everything to encourage our president to support him and bring this situation to an end so that we would be able to have peace within this area – the Northeast and all parts of Nigeria.

“So whatever has caused this insurgence we need to address it and aggressively too before it gets too late.”

July 10, 2015
Ekweremadu’s emergence good for Buhari – Akpabio

Former Governor of Akwa Ibom State, Senator Godswill Akpabio, on Thursday said the emergence of Senator Ike Ekweremadu of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as the Deputy Senate President is a blessing to the President Muhammadu Buhari administration.

He states this in Abuja shortly after a meeting with the National Working Committee (NWC) of the party.

According to him, the emergence of an opposition member as Deputy President of the Senate would ensure that issues before the legislature were examined in a more holistic and all encompassing bipartisan approach.

This, he said, would place the 8th Senate above the previous ones in terms of performance and quality of legislation.

The ex-governor said, “I think the development is very good for democracy because Ekweremadu was freely elected by senators.

“If you recall, he scored about 54 votes and the total number of PDP members in the senate are about 49. This means he was accepted across party lines.

“It is also possible that some of the senators of PDP did not vote for him and that we probably have more senators of the APC voting for him than the PDP.

“But the major thing is that he was voted for across party lines. That’s the way the Senate wanted it. They want an experienced person to work with the Senate President and they want a very stable Senate. They want a Senate that will be productive, a Senate that will have serious continuity.

“And I think it is good for politics and is also good for President Buhari, that at the end of the day, we have a Deputy Senate President who has been there before, who is not from the APC so that we can look at things from a holistic point of view, from a national perspective and not always through party binoculars.

“So, for me, I believe that the 8th Senate will achieve far more than the previous sessions did because of the fact that issues are going to be looked at not from a partisan point of view but in a bipartisan way.

“I am very proud of the decision by the Senate. I stand by the Deputy Senate President and the Senate President and the Senate for what they have done.”

July 9, 2015