Godswill Apkabip, Senate President
Senate dismisses plot to impeach Akpabio as ‘a ruse’
Amid claims of covert moves by some politicians and groups to create a new party structure in the country which will commence with the impeachment of the President of the senate, Godswill Akpabio, the Upper Chamber has dismissed the report as ‘a ruse.’
Reports have been rife of a plot to sack the leadership of the 10th senate, starting with the impeachment of the senate president, Akpabio, by aggrieved politicians, including lawmakers at the Upper Chambers, from both the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and the main opposition, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), as part of moves to form a greater party in the country.
The report of impeachment also follows accusations leveled against the lawmakers by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) of senators receiving N100 million each as palliatives from the Federal Government amid growing economic hardship in the country.
However, reacting to the impeachment claims, Saturday, the senate, through its Chairman, Committee on Media and Publicity, Yemi Adaramodu described it as ‘a ruse,’ while also asserting that the Red Chamber of the legislature remains ‘one united and fraternal family.’
“Our attention has just been drawn to syndicated satanic verses in a section of the media, of purported and illusory plots of leadership change in the Senate.
“The Nigerian Senate is one united and fraternal family. This imaginative composition is in the realm of the fake and fallacious story of N100m per legislator. It’s apt to note that the 10th Senate, under the leadership of Senator Godswill Akpabio has carried out its Legislative and constitutional duties diligently.
“Within a span of less than 60 Legislative days, the Senate has passed life-enhancing bills and motions. It has screened and confirmed Service Chiefs and Ministers, among others, apart from very essential oversight functions.
“We urge the fifth columnists, who operate undoubtedly outside the Senate, desperate to cause disharmony through media stunts and thus clipping the wings of Nigeria’s democracy, to take caution.
”The Senate should be allowed fresh air to settle down for its national assignments so that the Nigerian project can move forward. The media too, should be discerning not to be used as hand tool to these retailers of fake and bad news,” the statement added.
It would be recalled that, last Tuesday, the NLC through its National Assistant General Secretary, Mr Christopher Onyeka, accused the Federal Government of ‘insulting Nigerians’ by distributing a bag of rice to a dozen citizens while reportedly giving N100m palliative to each member of the National Assembly.
“We sent the letter to the Federal Government on September 1, 2023, so by September 22, 2023, the 21-day ultimatum will end.
“We have made it clear that the Federal Government has abandoned and absconded from the table for negotiation; that government is no longer negotiating with Nigerians and there is no good faith negotiation that is going on.
“President Bola Tinubu promised Nigerians on his own on the television with the President of NLC, Joe Ajaero, that he was going to restructure the committees, but he did not do that, and since then the committees have not met and there has been no negotiation that is on-going. As it is, NLC is not negotiating with the government,” Onyeka said.
The NLC secretary added that Nigerians were insulted by the inadequate palliative being given.
“Can you see the insult that a ward would share a bag of rice and the government calls that a palliative? “It is an insult to Nigerians, whereas the government gave legislators N70bn and each of the legislators gets over N100m in a country where Nigerians are suffering.
“The FG is buying cars and houses of over N100m for each person and Nigerians are keeping quiet as if what is going on is a normal thing,” the NLC scribe said.
