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  • Senate crisis: We ‘ve agreed on ceasefire – Ndume

    Members of the 8th Senate have agreed to put aside their differences and work in harmony for the progress of Nigeria, former  Majority Leader, Alhaji  Ali Ndume, (APC-Borno South), said yesterday.

    Ndume spoke with State House correspondents after leading the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate for Taraba State ,Mr.  Sani Danladi, to a closed door meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa,Abuja.

    He said that Nigerians had been supportive of the National Assembly and expected so much from it, but regretted that leadership crisis made the 8th Senate to perform below the expectations of Nigerians.

    “The legislative arm, which is supposed to be interdependent, was more or less independent and extensively antagonistic; and to some extent, you can say the leadership has been sabotaging the activities of the executive instead of cooperating with the executive to deliver the services Nigerians are expecting from us,” he said.

    “I am accusing specifically the Senate President, Bukola Saraki, not the leadership, so to say; as I have said several times, we elected the Senate leader who turned out to be Senators’ President.

    “We have a leftover time of six months and we have agreed to cease fire, including the Senate President himself, that we put the interest of Nigerians first.

    “That was why when we resumed, we have been able to pass certain outstanding bills and we have agreed to work together; the interest of the nation first before party’s interest or any other individual’s interest.

    “Any breach of that agreement that we have will also send us back to our trenches.’’

    On the 2019 budget proposal, Ndume said that the timely passage of the budget was important as it was one of the agreements the senators had.

    According to him, the budget belongs to Nigerians and Nigerians are expecting that the budget be passed as quickly as possible so that the contents of the budget will be delivered to Nigerians.

    He said that anyone that tried to stand on the way of the budget would be seen as a saboteur to Nigerians.

    Ndume said that APC senators were fully in support of the budget because they had input in it.

    “It is a budget of continuity; it is a realistic budget,”he said.

    On the appointment of Amina Zakari by the INEC as the head of its collation centre for the forthcoming presidential election, Ndume said her relationship with Buhari had nothing to do with her assigned role.

    He chided the opposition, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), saying the party had resorted to what he labelled CCC.

    “They are concentrating on complaining, criticising and contradicting themselves instead of campaigning.

    “We in the APC; we said it initially and we even have a manual of campaign and that is to discuss issues, ideals, integrity and things that will move this country forward.

    “PDP ruled this country for 16 years. Instead of giving Nigerians democracy, they were practising kleptocracy; and after Nigerians tasted three years of democracy now, they are struggling to take us back to the period of their kleptocractic governance and Nigerians will not accept that.

    “This election is going to be the choice of Nigerians to choose either to go back to the government of kleptocracy or continue with government of democracy,’’ he said.

    He told the correspondents that he had been appointed the Director-General, Campaign, in the Presidential Campaign Council of the APC for the North-East.

  • Saraki has personalised Senate, says Ndume

    A Senator has accused Senate President Bukola Saraki of running  the Senate  like a private business.

    “He has personalised the senate and he is becoming like the senators president not Senate president,” Senator Ali Ndume said.

    “The selection committee is the one with the mandate to give out committees. The committees do not belong to Saraki,” he said.

    According to him, he does not need to head any committee to provide service to the people as a senator

    Ndume said the plan to remove Saraki as senate president was alive but did not elaborate on it in his interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) Forum in Abuja yesterday.

    He said he would not be bought over with his appointment as Chairman, Senate Committee on Establishment and Public Service.

    Ndume is one of the APC lawmakers that insisted that Saraki must vacate his seat following his defection to the Peoples Democratic Party(PDP).

    He had a running battle with Saraki following his supposed support for the Executive against decisions of the National Assembly.

    He lost his seat as Leader of the Senate and was suspended for six legislative months.

    Ndume described the eighth Senate as the worst he had seen in terms of attendance at plenary.

    Since resumption from the extended annual recess on Oct. 9, the Senate has adjourned planary twice: first for two weeks on Oct. 24 to pave way for “oversight duties”.

    On Nov. 13, the senators adjourned plenary for one week after failing to form quorum, a situation they blamed on continuation of oversight duties by most of the absentees.

    The tempo is expected to take a further dip with the commencement of the campaigns ahead of the 2019 presidential and National Assembly elections billed for February.

    “The 8th Senate is the worst I have seen in terms of attendance, and it is because of the bad leadership of Saraki.

    “This is the first time we had to adjourn the Senate for lack of quorum.

    “Since I came to the National Assembly, two terms in the House of Representatives, and two terms now in the Senate, it had never been like this.

    “So, I was shocked that dahy (Nov. 13). I came a bit late, and when I entered the chambers, I was told we had adjourned because there was no quorum, and that only 14 people or there about turned up. ”It’s just terrible,’’ he lamented

    He said the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Atiku Abubakar will be a walkover for President Muhammadu Buhari in the 2019 elections.

    ”Next election is a walkover with Atiku.

    “We were anxious when PDP was to organise their primaries but when Atiku emerged, we were glad for so many reasons.

    “Atiku was our Vice President for eight years and he was one of the most powerful vice presidents we ever had and we know what he did.

    “He was under former President Obasanjo and in his book “Under My Watch”, he voluntarily described who the Presidential candidate is.

    “We all know where we were and where we are now. Had it been they are presenting a new person; someone that Nigerians do not know, that may have been a threat but with Atiku, no way.

    “Let us analyse it. North West is where the president comes from and we are banking on our highest votes there and if you go to any part of the North West, you will realise that his popularity is unprecedented.

    “Then if you go to North East, Buhari is a moral obligation,” he said.

    He expressed disappointment that Atiku, in spite of coming from the North East, there was no record of him sending relief materials to people displaced by Boko Haram.

    “We have to vote for him (Buhari) because we know where we were with the government of PDP in my state, including my local government, my town and even my house were taken over by Boko Haram.

    “It was the government of President Muhammadu Buhari that salvaged the situation and now my people are back to our local government.

    ”For me, this election is between Nigerians and the Nigerian corrupt.

    ”Ninety per cent of the so called rich people in Nigeria are public dependent. They make their money from Nigerians so, they gather themselves now, they want to take power again.

    “Nigerian masses will not agree to that move.

    “One thing the Nigerian masses even like in this (APC) government is that they caught these people that stole their money.

    “Buhari/Osinbajo is a very perfect team, you can’t fault them. The Vice-President (Prof. Yemi Osinbajo) is a complete gentleman, very transparent and honest, just like Mr. President (Buhari),” he said.

  • National Assembly: Ndume attacks Saraki, Dogara

    FORMER Senate Leader Mohammed Ali Ndume yesterday scored Senate President Bukola Saraki’s leadership of the upper chamber below average.

    Ndume, who represents Borno South Senatorial District, said it was stating the obvious that the Senate under Dr. Saraki, has failed Nigerians.

    Speaking at the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) Forum in Abuja, the Borno senator noted that Saraki and House of Representatives Speaker Yakubu Dogara, had privatised and personalised the legislative arm of government.

    Ndume said Saraki has no justification to retain his seat as Senate President after defecting to the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

    He also lauded the military for the concerted effort at eliminating insurgency in some parts of the country.

    On the Senate leadership, Ndume said: “I really want to admit that we have failed in our responsibility to the people somehow but we the members are not responsible for that.

    ”It is more of the responsibility of the leadership that shut down the Senate abruptly because of personal issues.

    ”It is very unfortunate. The Senate is the Nigerian Senate, it is not the senator’s Senate; it is not Saraki’s Senate.

    “It is very unfortunate that the National Assembly has been reduced to Saraki and Dogara.”

    According to him, Saraki and Dogara have privatised and personalised the legislative arm of government, a development he called an aberration.

    Ndume said: “They (Saraki and Dogara) have privatised and personalised the institution, and the reason we were elected to be there has been relegated to the background.

    “This is very unfortunate, but I want Nigerians to know that the Senate has not been shut down by the Senators or members of House of Representatives.

    ”The Senate was shut down by Saraki and Dogara and they should be held responsible for that.”

    He noted that the Senate, which is yet to reconvene, must move on without Saraki.

    The former Senate Leader added that he had made concerted efforts to see how the Senate could reconvene, especially to consider about five matters of national importance.

    His efforts, he said, have been without success, adding that the the matters he wanted considered were abandoned by the National Assembly before it proceeded on the long recess.

    His words: “We tried everything to get the Senate President or the leadership to reconvene the Senate, but that have not been successful.”

    On why the Senate President should quit, Ndume noted that  Saraki should know that he was not supposed to retain the position of President of the Senate, because he could not “eat his cake and have it”.

    Saraki, he said, lost all rights to retain the seat when he defected to the PDP.

    Ndume posited that the only thing that could save Saraki from being impeached remained a vote of confidence from his colleagues.

    ”I think that is the only thing he can do; may be he did that before, let him try it; let him call for vote of confidence from us, his colleagues.

    ”I assure you that he will not get the majority.”

    Ndume described the statement credited to some politicians that Saraki could only be impeached by two-third of members of the house as not only wrong, but also a total misconception.

    To him, since Saraki decided to leave the APC for PDP, he should have left the position as he could not be in a minority party and be President of the Senate.

    He recalled that as minority leader in the House of Representatives, he defected to PDP from the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) and resigned from the position without being asked to do so.

    The senator said it was natural that he left the position because he could not move from the minority to the majority and still be a minority leader.

    Ndume noted that there should only be one Senate President who is supposed to come from the majority political party.

    “I am still thinking and hoping that Saraki will do the right thing and the right thing is for him to relinquish that position for the majority to preside,” Ndume said.

    On the fight against Boko Haram, he said the move by the Chief of Army Staff, Lt.-Gen. Tukur Buratai, in ensuring collaboration with the Nigerian Air Force and other agencies had helped a great deal.

    He said that the relocation of the operational headquarters of the military was a major factor in the defeat of Boko Haram.

    However, he called on them to concentrate on three black spots of “the deep Sambisa Forest, the Lake Chad fringes and the Mandara Mountains.

    He said the sect, which was still active in those areas for obvious reasons, must be brought to its knees.

    Ndume said: “The resurfacing of the sect is more in Northern Borno. These are the fringes of Lake Chad. I am suspecting that because of the money they got from the ransome allegedly paid, their proximity to international terrorist organisation, Nigeria bordering Mali and Niger and the open, vast and porous borders, they are buying and transporting light arms.

    ”Also, they are getting money from the businesses around Lake Chad that they have taken over. They are now the ones involved in the cattle business and all that.

    “Those are the areas they get money from. With this money they are able to fund their operations.”

    On concerns that the sect had not been completely eliminated, the lawmaker said fighting insurgency was different from fighting conventional war.

    He said: “We have been fighting insurgency in the North East which is different from the conventional war where you know you have soldiers belonging to a particular group that you can identify.

    “Besides, insurgency is not happening only in Nigeria. It is happening in Afghanistan, Syria and all that. Like the case of Afghanistan, the case has been going on for some years now.”

  • Boko Haram: Ndume hails military, urges concentration on 3 black spots

    Sen. Ali Ndume (APC-Borno) has commended the Nigerian military for concerted effort at eliminating Boko Haram.

    Ndume gave the commendation when he appeared on the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) flagship programme in Abuja.

    He said the move by the Chief of Army Staff, Lt.-Gen. Tukur Buratai, in ensuring collaboration with the Nigerian Airforce and other agencies had helped a great deal.

    He added that the relocation of the operational headquarters of the military was a major factor in the defeat of Boko Haram.

    However, he called on them to concentrate on three black spots of “the deep Sambisa forest, the Lake Chad fringes and the Mandara Mountains.

    He said the sect, which was still active in those areas for obvious reasons, must be brought to its knees.

    “The resurfacing  of the sect is more in Northern Borno. These are the fringes of Lake Chad.

    “I am suspecting that because of the money they got from the ransome allegedly paid, their proximity to international terrorist organisation, Nigeria bordering Mali and Niger and the open, vast and porous borders, they are buying and transporting light arms.

    “Also, they are getting money from the businesses around Lake Chad that they have taken over. They are now the ones involved in the cattle business and all that.

    “Those are the areas they get money from. With this money they are able to fund their operations,” he said.

    On concerns that the sect had not been completely eliminated, the lawmaker said fighting insurgency was different from fighting conventional war.

    He said, “we have been fighting insurgency in the North East which is different from the conventional war where you know you  have soldiers belonging to a particular group that you can identify.

    ” Besides, insurgency is not happening only in Nigeria. It is happening in Afghanistan, Syria and all that. Like the case of Afghanistan, the case has been going on for some years now.

    “Insurgency is not conventional war and cannot be easily eliminated. Even in Afghanistan, insurgency has been technically defeated but not completely eliminated.

    “So in the Nigerian case it is the same. Boko Haram has been technically defeated.

    “As someone from the North East and particularly from the epicentre of Boko Haram, I can tell you that this government has succeeded in defeating Boko Haram although has not eliminated it.

    “What we are working on now is to eliminate it.

    “Unfortunately the sect, especially those that are from the purported Shekau and that of Mamanur in the Lake Chad fringes, have something they are holding on to that is very sensitive and important to the Nigerian government.

    “We are suspecting that the remaining Chibok girls, numbering about a hundred are still  with the Shekau’s faction.

    “Mamanur’s side was responsible for the adoption of the Dapchi girls and they are still holding on to Leah Sharibu.”

    Ndume, however, expressed optimism that the war would soon come to an end.(NAN)

  • Saraki has no justification to remain Senate President, says Ndume

    Sen. Ali Ndume, (APC-Borno South), says that Dr Bukola Saraki, President of the Senate, has no justification to retain the seat, since he has defected to the opposition party.

    He said that Saraki should know that he was not supposed to retain the position of President of the Senate, saying that he could not “eat his cake and have it’.

    Ndume, who stated this at the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) Forum in Abuja on Sunday, said that Saraki lost all rights to retain the seat since he had defected to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

    He said the only thing that could save Saraki from being impeached and remain as President of the Senate, was a vote of confidence from his colleagues.

    “I think that is the only thing he can do may be; he did that before, let him try it; let him call for vote of confidence from us, his colleagues.

    “I assure you that he will not get the majority, “Ndume said, adding that he was disappointed in Saraki.

    He described the statement credited to some politicians that Saraki could only be impeached by two third of members of the house, as not only wrong, but also a total misconception.

    The Senator stressed that since Saraki decided to leave the APC for PDP, he should have left the position as he could not be in a minority party and be President of the Senate.

    Ndume recalled that as minority leader in the House of Representatives when he defected to PDP from the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP), he resigned from the position without being asked to do so.

    He said it was natural that he left the position because he could not move from the minority to the majority and still be a minority leader.

    He said Saraki could therefore, not move from majority to minority and still be the President of the Senate.

    Ndume noted that there should only be one Senate President who is supposed to come from the majority political party, adding that it was an aberration and abnormal for someone in the minority to lead the majority.

    “I am still thinking and hoping that Saraki will do the right thing and the right thing is for him to relinquish that position for the majority to preside,“ he said.

    NAN reports that Saraki while leaving the APC in July on his twitter handle, said: “I wish to inform Nigerians that, after extensive consultations, I have decided to take my leave of the APC.”

    Saraki had alleged continued persecution as one of the reasons he was leaving the APC.

    Mr Adams Oshiomhole, the APC National Chairman, while reacting to the development on Aug. 14, said that Nigerian Senate could not be subjected to minority rule.

    He noted that there was nowhere in the world where minority had presided over majority in the house, adding that the honourable thing for Saraki to do after defecting to the opposition PDP, was to step down. (NAN)

  • Reps caucus cautions Ndume, others over Ekweremadu’s safety

    The Southeast Caucus in the House of Representatives has warned that it will hold Senator Ali Ndume and his group responsible if Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu should meet with any harm.

    The caucus, in a statement yesterday by its leader, Deputy Minority leader Chukwuka Onyema, accused Ndume of interfering in the statutory and professional job of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

    It noted that Ndune’s “reckless comments”, as reported by a national newspaper on Monday, had further unmasked the real issues and those behind Ekweremadu’s ordeal.

    The statement reads: “We have closely watched events around the National Assembly, especially the ruthless attempts to emasculate the opposition and unseat the Senate leadership by all means possible.

    “We have also followed the ongoing investigation by the EFCC on the allegations levelled against Ekweremadu. Despite our doubts, we have maintained our calm, hoping that the law would take its natural cause to vindicate the innocent.

    “However, like every responsible and patriotic Nigerian, we have every reason to worry after reading the comments by the Senator Ndume claiming that the EFCC is treating Ekweremadu with kid gloves and, therefore, canvassed for Ekweremadu’s detention and indictment by the agency, despite the obvious ill-health of Senator Ekweremadu.

    “While Ekweremadu needs to be alive to face his investigation, Ndume prefers to push EFCC to compromise the health of Ekweremadu, no matter the possible outcome.

    “Indeed, reading Senator Ndume’s comments clears every iota of doubt that he and some other All Progressives Congress (APC) senators and cabals are behind the ordeal of the Deputy Senate President and that this investigation has to do with the remorseless efforts to unseat the Senate leadership.

    “It is now easier to link the hostage-taking of Senator Ekweremadu and attempted hostage-taking of the Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki, on July 24, 2014 by agents of state on a day both were supposed to be presiding over the Senate.”

  • APC chairman Oshiomhole calls for calm as Ndume dismisses group

    All Progressives Congress (APC) National Chairman Adams Oshiomhole spoke yesterday of challenges in the party, saying members of the National Working Committee knew about them before contesting for offices.

    He called for calm.

    Oshiomhole spoke on a day a breakaway group announced the formation of  the “Reformed APC”.

    Speaking while receiving a report of the APC Elections Appeals Committee, he said would not shun the fact that there were challenges within the party, adding that his leadership would  do everything possible to address them.

    Oshiomhole said: “We can’t claim that we didn’t know. We are not going to lament that we knew, but we didn’t know it was this much.”

    The APC chairman, who promised to ensure that reports of committees set up by the party are implemented, said: “My appeal to all those who are aggrieved is to be patient. The assurance is that under my leadership, we will make honest mistakes and once our attention is drawn, we will find courage to make up for our mistake.

    “Some people say how can people eat their words? For me, I will eat my words if it is nutritious enough and if that is what I have to do to have peace in the family. I am not going to be detained by arrogance because I don’t think at this level, any of us will take a position except based on our conviction.

    “I am very appreciative of the fact that we were elected and, in the case of some of us, we were even unopposed that our members have entrusted us to pilot the affairs of the party at this time.

    “Like I said in the Senate, we knew there were challenges when we offered ourselves to contest for offices for which we have now been elected. So, we can’t claim that we didn’t know. We are not going to lament that we knew, but we didn’t know it was this much.

    “To us, it is a huge opportunity to make a difference, not only for our party, but for our country. So, I appeal to people to realise that a blind man can redeem his eyes if he applies the correct medication. But you can’t force it open overnight; otherwise, you will create more problem and damage the eye the more.

    “But we will do everything possible to sustain confidence and trust. For us, everybody is important; for us, everybody matters and we want to run an inclusive party.

    “Like I said in my acceptance speech, in a true democracy, there are no losers. If you run the party efficiently and democratically, those who lost will find that their interest and those services they wanted to render are being rendered efficiently and democratically. They will feel a sense of relief.

    “As they say, if God gives you power, may He not deny you wisdom. I pray for wisdom and courage and I believe that we have it and we will deploy it for peace within the APC family.”

    National Publicity Secretary Bolaji Adullahi said: “We have a report of a group that purportedly described themselves as a faction of our party. We will be able to give our reaction as soon as we get the full details and have the opportunity to review it”

    Former Senate Leader Ali Ndume dismissed the new group, saying only God and time could determine the APC’s direction.

    The senator, who admitted that politics is all about interest and that there was nothing wrong if an aggrieved group spoke out about their displeasure, said movement from one political party to and other was normal in politics.

    Ndume said: “What is happening is part of politics, especially now in our political days. All of us are Nigerians; we know what is happening. So, politics is about interest and if somebody feels that his or her interest will be more protected by voicing out his dissent, so it is a movement that is normal in politics.”

    On whether the threat of defection could affect the chances of APC in next year’s general elections, Ndume said: “ No. Let me say that this party is a party of time decided by the Nigerian masses and it is only God that can decide the time of a political party.

    “A party as bad as PDP ruled this country for 16 years, so we are just here slightly for over 1000 days, and the people that destroyed, impacted or inflicted damage on the country were here for 16 years and expecting the APC to fix the country in less than four years. This building (party secretariat) takes not less than two years to be built, but if you want to destroy it you can do that in 30 minutes. “

  • I’m vindicated by judgment, says Ndume

    I’m vindicated by judgment, says Ndume

    FORMER Senate Leader, Mohammed Ali Ndume, yesterday declared that he had been vindicated with Federal High Court, Abuja’s declaration of his suspension by the Senate as illegal and unconstitutional.

    The Borno South senator said that he never committed any offence that should have warranted his suspension by the Senate.

    Justice Babatunde Quadri held yesterday that the suspension of Ndume for 90 legislative days “is a violation of his right to fair hearing and freedom of expression as guaranteed by sections 36 and 39 of the extant Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended) and Article 7(1) and 9(2) of the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights, 2004.”

    Ndume said that he approached the Court when he was suspended for declaratory judgment to challenge the action of the Senate and to ask the court to declare the decision totally illegal against the backdrop that there was no cause for him to be suspended in the first place.

    He expressed happiness over the judgement and noted that the Senate erred because it lacked the right to suspend a member more than two weeks, which is “what our rules say.”

    “So where they got the power to suspend me for six months was what I approached the court to seek declaration, and the court has so declared that it was not right and it was illegal.”

    Ndume said he had put everything that happened behind him, including the entitlements he was denied of during the suspension.

    The lawmaker, who said that it was not possible to reverse the period he was on suspension, added that he had left everything including those behind the process to God.

    He said that he had received a letter from the Clerk to the Senate, Nelson Ayewoh, intimating him that his suspension would be over on Tuesday 14th November, 2017.

    He said that he would resume plenary on Wednesday, November 15, 2017.

    Ndume said: “I am just from court and I thank God that the court has declared my suspension unconstitutional, illegal and null and void, and that was what I approached the court for declaratory judgment and I got that judgment today.

    “So, that nullifies my suspension which hitherto or ab initio I said it was illegal, because first of all, there was no cause for me to be suspended because I didn’t do anything that would have warranted my suspension in the first place.

    “And secondly also, the Senate doesn’t have the right to suspend a member more than two weeks. That is what our rules say. So, where they got the power to suspend me for six months was what I approached the court to seek declaration and the court has so declared that it was not right and it was illegal.

    “Even though I have already spent out my illegal suspension time, I did that not because of my person but because of the institution so that individuals cannot just because they are elected one among equal to lead the institution, to take advantage or abuse the process and I thank God for that.

    “And I also thank God that I am alive to have seen it, because as I said several times, so many members lost their seats. A member died in the Senate, two or three members died in the House of Representatives and I am not better than them in any way. It could have been me. So this power or this thing is just a transient thing.

    “I thank God for that and for today, for me to be able to see that judgment too. And this is not victory for myself. It is not personal. It is not that I am trying to prove anything. I am saying that as part of somebody who has been in this democratic institution for over 14years now, it behoves of me when things like this happen to see that things are done correctly, and I hope that my colleagues who have done that will equally see the wisdom in the judgment of today.

    “It is not a victory or anything; it is just strengthening democracy and doing what is right.”

  • Ndume, Borno Assembly reconcile

    •Shettima brokers peace between parties

    Borno State Governor Kashim Shettima has reconciled a former Senate leader, Ali Ndume, and members of the House of Assembly, following a crisis of confidence between the two parties.

    The Assembly closed for a month to protest Ndume’s alleged assault on a lawmaker, Bukar Daja-Ali (Damboa Constituency).

    There were also attacks on other lawmakers.

    Though Ndume denied the allegation, the Assembly vowed not to resume sitting.

    But Shettima, who was away when the incident happened, met with the warring parties at the Governor’s Lodge in Abuja.

    A reliable source said: “The governor was unhappy the two could engage in open confrontation, which could ridicule the state.

    “According to him, political leaders in the state cannot afford to live in a divided house, in view of the enormous challenges confronting the state.

    “Shettima said he summoned the meeting to resolve the crisis, and find ways to avert a recurrence. He implored the parties to sheath their swords in the interest of the state.

    “Despite that Ndume denied slapping Daja-Ali, the governor insisted on no victor, no vanquished resolution, saying it was time to move forward.

    “The parties embraced and decided to forgive and forget. They attributed the crisis to misinformation and communication gap.”

    Another source said the “lawmakers agreed to withdraw plans to write a letter of protest to the Senate against Ndume. They also pledged to work together for the larger interest of Borno.”

  • ‘Why Ndume may not return to Senate yet

    ‘Why Ndume may not return to Senate yet

    SUSPENDED former Senate Leader Mohammed Ali Ndume may face the hurdle of withdrawing his case challenging his suspension by the Senate before he is allowed to resume plenary session, it was learnt yesterday.

    Ndume (Borno South) was handed six months suspension on March 27, 2017.

    A source close to the Senate leadership said the resumption date of Ndume had been worked out from the date he was suspended to tally with the six months’ suspension duration.

    The source added that the calculation showed that the former Senate Leader would resume plenary on November 14.

    It noted that if Monday, October 2 is declared a public holiday by the Federal Government, Ndume’s resumption date would be November 15, 2017.

    The source added that one more hurdle Ndume would have to clear was for him to withdraw the case he instituted challenging his suspension in court.

    It said it would be setting a bad precedence to readmit Ndume to the Senate chamber while he is challenging the authority of the Senate to discipline him in court.

    Chairman, Senate Committee on Media and Public Affairs Senator Aliyu Sabi Abdullahi said Ndume’s resumption will not take effect next week because of the two-month recess the Senate went.

    It was learnt that the recess period will be deducted from the six-month while public holidays, which fell within the period, will also be excluded from the period.

    Ndume was suspended by the upper chamber on March 27, 2017, after the adoption of the recommendations of its Committee on Ethic, Privileges and Public Petitions.

    The Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions, led by Samuel Anyanwu, recommended that Ndume be suspended following the point of Order he raised that the Senate President Bukola Saraki was on a vengeance mission against the Comptroller- General of Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) Col. Hameed Ibrahim Ali (retd).

    The Borno lawmaker, in his point of Order, called for investigation into the allegation by the Customs alleging that the Senate President refused to pay duty of N74 million for a Sports Utility Vehicle (SUV) valued at N298 million imported into the country by Saraki.