By Nwobodo Chidiebere
The 8th Senate recently celebrated its one year in office. The political machination and hullaballoo that heralded the emergence of its bipartisan leadership, is gradually settling down in the eyes of the observing public. I will wish to use this medium to extend my deep congratulations to the leadership of Senate under the watch of Dr Bukola Saraki—the Senate President, for steering the turbulent ship of 8th Senate for one year, in the midst of controversies that greeted its emergence against permutations and projections of party leaders.
Worthy of note and conspicuous acknowledgement, is the re-election of Senator Ike Ekweremadu as deputy Senate President for an unprecedented three consecutive terms. His third political voyage as Deputy Senate President of 8th Senate is more unparalleled, having been elected historically as Deputy Senate President of the PDP extraction in APC’s slight majority Senate—which is unmatched in the political annals of contemporary Nigeria. Dr Ike Ekweremadu’s third missionary journey as deputy senate president of 8th Senate, was not a result of the so-called pre-Senate leadership election deal between Dr Bukola Saraki and the PDP Senators, but an impeccable proof of his legislative prowess cum bipartisan overwhelming support in the Senate.
After the emergence of the current leadership of 8th Senate, some aggrieved Senators who believed that they were outfoxed in the political chess game that enthroned Dr Bukola Saraki and veteran Senator Ike Ekweremadu as senate president and deputy, respectively, went to court under the oxymoronic name of Senate Unity Forum to challenge electoral processes which threw up these fine gentlemen as unequal co-pilots of the Nigerian Senate. After tactless shenanigans and media grandstanding regarding the forgery case at Federal High Court, Abuja, the stark reality of being on a wild goose chase has finally enveloped the consciousness of these Senators, who have silently withdrawn their support from the dead-on-arrival case for lack of substantial evidence and empirical facts.
A new twist is being added to this forgery allegation case. There is unfolding conspiracy by those I can describe as political scavengers and tyrannical elements, who are ardent ideologists of absoluteness of political power which contradicts democratic norms and ethos. These are dark agents of dictatorship whose morbid intention is to cripple or annex legislative arm of government by subjecting current Senate Leadership under perpetual torment and harassment using state institutions cum apparatus, while masquerading their extremist exploits, to decimate opposing views under the guise of anti-corruption fight.
Hitherto, strong critics of this administration have been thrown into jail extra-judicially; using every flimsy corruption allegation they could lay hands on. Even the dumbest political neophyte knows that the on-going persecution of Senate President Saraki has political undertones. Those who thought that the Senate leadership could be cowed into becoming a rubber stamp Red Chamber by dragging Saraki to CCT, have been flabbergasted by the resoluteness of the Senate leadership to protect legislative independence—which represents the bedrock of our nascent democracy.
Since the promulgation of 8th Senate, Deputy Senate President, Ekweremadu has been playing the role of a stabilizing force in the Senate. His proven leadership experience vis-à-vis emotional intelligence has helped to bring stability and confidence in the leadership acumen of 8th Senate, irrespective of distractions being faced by Senator Saraki as a result of his trial at CCT. Dr Ekweremadu, being the de facto leader of the opposition party, the PDP by virtue of the position he is presently occupying, has not hesitated in offering constructive criticisms on how Nigerian State is being run by President Muhammadu Buhari-led APC government. His objective criticism of this government on some national issues is not borne out of hatred for President Buhari or for the sole purpose of playing extremist opposition but the love of the country, which was epitomized in his recently launched book—Who Will Love My Country: Ideas for Building the Nigeria of our Dreams.
From the unfolding events in the last few weeks, it appears that the tyrants in this administration abhor Senator Ekweremadu’s patriotic role in stabilizing 8th Senate in the absence of Senate President Saraki, and his courageous statements in the face of rampaging dictatorial tendencies. Those anti-democratic elements, who view Deputy Senate President, Ekweremadu as the only standing objective/opposing voice have being scavenging all the political debris looking for what to deploy in tarnishing his unblemished integrity in the eyes of some politically naïve Nigerians.
This desperate plot to rope in Sen. Ekweremadu began few weeks ago, when unsolicited and premeditated Anti-Corruption Ambassadorial award was given to him in his office by representatives of EFCC in National Assembly, and was vehemently denied in less than 24 hours by the same commission just to embarrass Sen. Ekweremadu. It has been placed on record that he never lobbied or canvassed for such an award and did not deserve the media embarrassment he got, which was used to placate the over-bloated ego of those gunning for his head.
•Chidiebere writes from Abuja via [email protected]