Senate President, David Mark and Speaker, House of Representatives, Aminu Tambuwal
| credits: File copy
| credits: File copy
A broad spectrum of senators has
excoriated the leader of the Action Congress of Nigeria, Asiwaju Ahmed
Tinubu, for advocating the scrapping of the Senate in order to reduce
the huge cost of governance in the country.
Tinubu, a former member of the Senate
had at a public forum last week in Abuja, argued that it would be better
to allow the House of Representatives represent the people since its
members were closer to the grassroots.
He had said, “We have kept complaining
about the cost of governance and the recurrent expenditure. But we have
never examined the structural problem of even the constitution that we
are operating.
“Why do we need two Houses of the
National Assembly, whereas the House of Representatives representing the
smaller constituencies is enough in the same number of population?
“Why not get rid of the Senate for a slim and better legislative activity? Let us start examining that.”
Senegal had on Thursday passed a law scrapping its Senate, a move that will result to $16m savings annually.
But in separate interviews with Sunday Punch, the senators questioned Tinubu’s logic, and stressed that his wife was a serving senator.
Besides, his party, the ACN has 17 senators in the red legislative chamber.
The Senate Leader, Victor Ndoma-Egba
(PDP, Cross River Central) who fired the first salvo, said Tinubu’s
logic would not fly in a multi-ethnic and multi-religious country like
Nigeria.
He argued that the multiplicity of ethnic nationalities meant that minority rights must be protected for democracy to function.
Ndoma-Egba said, “What is the logic behind a bicameral legislature? It is adopted in a heterogeneous society.
“The Senate is a representation based on equality.
“If you scrap the Senate, then you have denied the minorities proper representation.”
Tinubu’s suggestion runs contrary to the logic of bicameral legislature.
“In Senegal, although they are multi
ethnic, they are religiously homogenous. It is not the same with the
situation with Nigeria.
On the issue of the cost of governance,
the total budget of the National Assembly is N150billion, which is just
3per cent of the national budget.
“It is a fraction of what we have spent
on fuel subsidy which is now over N2trn; it is a fraction of what is yet
to be accounted for in the pension’s funds. So, 3 per of the national
budget cannot be the problem.
“Tinubu is free to make a proposal for constitution changes, but we are yet to see any submission to that effect.”
Also, Senator Thomson Sekibo (PDP,
Rivers East), the former governor of Lagos State, needed to get his
facts right before making such suggestions.
He noted that there were other areas of waste which government needed to deal with.
Sekibo said, “Scrap the Senate? Except
of course he is calling for the scrapping of the legislature as a whole,
in which case we will be talking of another form of government not
democracy, because the legislature is what separates true democracy from
other forms of government.
“I think that he (Tinubu) has not put his facts in proper perspective if he is comparing us with Senegal.
“We settled for a bi-cameral legislature
which has worked successfully in most democracies of the World after
exhaustive consultations.
Senator Ita Enang (PDP, Akwa Ibom
North-East), expressed shock and wondered why a former senator with a
wife also in the senate would voice such suggestion.
He said, “It is unfortunate that this is coming from him (Tinubu), because he is a senator and his wife is a serving senator.
“I will not be quick replying him. I
think it is an issue of constitutional amendment if he makes a
submission to the National Assembly.”
But an ACN senator, Olugbenga Obadara
(ACN, Ogun Central), was cautious in his response. He noted that the
country was in a democracy; therefore, anybody was free and should be
allowed to air his or her views.
He said, “Tinubu is our leader and he has the democratic right to speak on any national issue and should be allowed to do so.
“We cannot deny the fact that he loves this country like every one of us.
“If he speaks on any issue, it should be
looked at on its merit especially now that we are in the process of
amending the Constitution.”
Senator Enyinanya Abaribe, though
acknowledged Tinubu’s right to air his views, he noted that Nigeria was
not Senegal where the President had the right to sack the senate.
Consequently, he said, “We have a
constitution,” just as he advised him to present his position “to the
National Assembly for consideration.
In an analysis of the 2010 budget for
example, Nigeria Country Director, ActionAid, Dr. Hussaini Abdu noted
that: The “Senate is to spend N270million on retreat.
“This brings to an average of N2.5m per
senator for the retreat and it further brings it to N500,000 per day
for each of the senators. (For a five-day retreat). Senate is to spend
N15bn on sitting allowances and honorarium in the 2010 budget.
“Also, the Senate is to spend N1.2bn; on computer materials and supplies.”
Not less than N150bn was provided in the
budget for the National Assembly this year; this include the capital
and recurrent expenditures for both houses, which comprised 109 senators
and 360 members of the House of Representatives.
