‘Distinguished’ senators

By Casmir Igbokwe

Catholic Church recognizes two categories of sin – mortal and venial sins. Mortal sins are those grave actions we commit in full knowledge of their gravity. Venial sins are minor infractions committed with less self-awareness of wrongdoing that can be easily forgiven when one goes to confession. In Nigeria, the political class has committed all manner of mortal sins against the citizens.

Let’s take a look at the National Assembly of Nigeria. Those in the upper chamber call themselves distinguished senators. But they are far from it. Recently, these senators disturbed Nigerians with budget padding allegations. The one representing Bauchi Central Senatorial District, Abdul Ningi, alleged that the red chamber padded the 2024 budget to the tune of N3.7 trillion. The one representing Cross River North, Agom Jarigbe, claimed that all his ranking colleagues received N500 million each, but that he got none.

There is another nebulous concept. It is called ‘constituency projects’. But it has become a byword for fraud and an avenue to siphon public funds. Sometimes, it is difficult to track down the location or other details of these projects. A total of 7,447 projects amounting to N2.24 trillion were reportedly inserted in the 2024 budget by the National Assembly. Some of these projects include 1,150 street lights worth N212 billion, 427 boreholes worth N82.5 billion, 170 ICT projects with a value of N30.95 billion, and N7.61 billion for empowerment of traditional rulers. This means in effect that each street light costs about N184 million while each borehole costs about N193.2 million.

A civic non-profit organization, BudgIT, which highlighted some of these issues, noted that there was no detailed allocation for the N3.7 trillion in the 2024 budget. Director and co-founder of BudgIT, Seun Onigbinde, explained that the allocations of the National Assembly, National Judicial Council (NJC), Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFUND) and other government-owned enterprises did not have a detailed breakdown. “What are you spending the money on? INEC is collecting a huge chunk of funds but there are no public details about what the funds are used for, the same thing with NJC, even the National Assembly,” Onigbinde said.

Senate spokesman, Yemi Adaramodu, had explained that the N3.7 trillion was not padded but that it was for the agencies of government on first line charge. In order to save themselves from national shame and embarrassment, perhaps, the senators quickly slammed a three-month suspension against the whistle blower, Abdul Ningi.

Senate Majority Leader, Opeyemi Bamidele, tried very hard to hoodwink Nigerians with some fallacious statements. As far as Bamidele is concerned, Ningi’s allegation was tantamount to a civilian coup against Senate President, Godswill Akpabio. As he put it, “I want Nigerians to know for history’s sake that the last time the people of South-South had a chance to be Senate President was over 40 years ago. The last time the South had a chance to be Senate President was during Obasanjo’s administration when it went to the South-East. Five people were elected because they were impeached in quick succession. But as soon as it left the South, we had peace because we (the South) will always cooperate. David Mark spent eight years. Ahmad Lawan spent four peaceful years. Even Saraki, with all he did, spent four peaceful years.”

This is hogwash! What the Senate should have done is to conduct a thorough and open investigation to clear its name rather than just suspending Ningi or engaging in fallacious arguments. Bamidele’s strategy is not different from that of some aides and loyalists of President Bola Tinubu during the campaign for the 2023 presidential election. Seeing that defeat was staring them in the face, these aides and loyalists deployed ethnic sentiment as a weapon of political conquest. In Lagos and some South-West states, they made it look like the electoral battle was between the Igbo and the Yoruba. Some of them warned the Igbo against interfering in Lagos politics and such other nonsense. Today, ordinary Nigerians, be they Igbo, Yoruba or Hausa, are suffering the pangs of bad leadership while those in power continue to revel in ostentatious living.

For instance, these same lawmakers took delivery of brand new sport utility vehicles (SUVs) reportedly worth N160 million each soon after they assumed office. The total cost is said to be about N57.6 billion. The Chairman of the House Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Hon. Akin Rotimi, said the vehicles were tied to the oversight functions of the lawmakers.

Recently, Akpabio mistakenly revealed, while speaking at one of their plenary sessions last year, that each of the 109 ‘sinators’ had been given a token meant to enable them to enjoy their holiday. The token was not less than N2 million each amounting to a total of about N218 million. When his colleagues reminded him that he was speaking on live television, Akpabio rephrased his statement, saying, “In order to allow you to enjoy your holiday, the Senate President has sent prayers to your mailboxes to assist you to go on a safe journey and return.” Meanwhile, in June last year, President Bola Tinubu allocated N70 billion to the National Assembly in the amended supplementary budget to support the working conditions of new members.

This is amid penury that has enveloped the Nigerian masses. The rate of inflation has continued to skyrocket. To appreciate the level of this inflationary trend, let’s note that in 1999, the rate of inflation was about 6.62 per cent. Before Muhammadu Buhari took over as President in 2015, it was about 9.01 per cent. By August 2023, about three months after Bola Tinubu took over from Buhari, it had jumped to 25.08 per cent. Food inflation as of the same August 2023 was 29.34 per cent. In February 2024, the rate of inflation rose to 31.70 per cent while food inflation climbed to 37.92 per cent.

To break this down further, a bag of 50kg of rice in August 2015 was a little above N8, 000. Today, the same commodity is over N80, 000. The country’s currency, the naira, has received humiliation in the foreign exchange market. From as little as N200 to a dollar a few years ago, the exchange rate today is over N1,500 to a dollar. Many companies have shut down, leading to an increase in the rate of unemployment. Hunger is a present danger.

Terrorists and other criminal elements have intensified their onslaught against hapless Nigerians. Over 280 schoolchildren were kidnapped in Kaduna recently. The terrorists have demanded N1 billion as ransom to release the children. They also demanded ransom of N40 trillion, 11 Hilux vans and 150 motorcycles before they could release some 16 citizens kidnapped in the same Kaduna recently.

Leadership of any society or group usually reflects the image and character of that society. Akpabio, as President of the Senate, has seriously damaged the reputation of the current Senate. Since he assumed office, it has been from one perfidy to the other. Most times, he talks before he thinks. At the recent funeral of the late Chief Executive Officer of Access Holdings, Herbert Wigwe, Akpabio lampooned the Governor of Rivers State, Siminalayi Fubara. The governor had examined the life and times of Wigwe and wondered what the struggle was all about. Akpabio responded: “Your Excellency, Governor Fubara, if there is nothing in the struggle, don’t struggle.” The Rivers State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has declared him an enemy of Rivers State. Akpabio had also claimed that an unverified report indicated that the state governors received N30 billion each from the federation account to cushion the effect of inflation and high cost of food prices. He later apologized when he discovered that he was wrong.

We must begin to interrogate the structure of our current legislature. As far as I am concerned, having a bicameral legislature is a drainpipe on our resources. What we need is a unicameral legislature, which should be on a part-time basis.

The principal duty of a legislature is to make laws. That is what obtains in most advanced democracies in the world. In Nigeria, however, our lawmakers go beyond lawmaking to engage in other questionable activities. Execution of projects, for instance, should be the duty of the executive arm of government. But in Nigeria, lawmakers also execute projects.

Lawmakers are also elected to act as a check on the executive. But in Nigeria, they cozy up to the executive and join them in sharing the national cake. Oftentimes, Akpabio and some other principal officers of the National Assembly are in the Presidential Villa to do what only God knows. Soon after the suspension of Ningi over budget padding controversy, Akpabio and his deputy, Barau Jibrin, landed in the Villa and met behind closed doors with Tinubu.

Nigeria is blessed with human and natural resources, but it’s so unfortunate that it has been misruled by a tiny fraction of the society. Citizens are either docile or hampered by ethnic and other primordial sentiments to act. There is need for a return to true federalism or restructuring. We need to make the centre less attractive by devolving power to the regions. We can revisit the report of the 2014 National Conference as a guide. We cannot continue to do the same thing all the time and expect to see changes. Who will bail the cat? Who will rescue Nigeria? The answer is blowing in the wind.

Re: Dividends of ‘familiocracy’

Casmir, the hidden treasures of Nigerian economy demands a high degree of financial discipline, respect for the rule of law and mastery of due process. A President with the above qualities will ensure that every policy of his administration will allow little or no wastages. Such President will have a cabinet with high level of technocrats with little political affiliation. A President of such qualities will eschew nepotism, tribalism and ‘familiocracy’. Unfortunately, Tinubu’s government is short of all these qualities. No wonder, there’s a lot of indiscipline, financial misappropriation and total collapse in governance. Tinubu’s government needs to wake up to arrest nepotism and dividends of ‘familiocracy’ for the benefit of the entire citizenry.

-Pharm. Okwuchukwu Njike, +234 803 885 4922

•Also published in the Daily Sun of Monday, March 18, 2024