Something is terribly wrong. It started as a huge joke. Strangely, it’s gradually becoming a sad norm. As politicians prepare to dig it out in 2019, this misnomer may become the new order.
In case you are unaware, lawmakers are facing a dangerous uprising from their constituencies. They are being beaten up or attacked by angry electorate, who are obviously targeting the wrong people. Lawmakers, ordinarily, do not execute projects. But in Nigeria, we ask for the impossible.
In Kano, Niger, Katsina, Bauchi and curiously, Yobe states respectively, electorate are on the leash. In the absence of guns, which citizens are forbidden from possessing, Nigerians are picking up stones and other dangerous weapons to chase out their senators and in some cases, members of House of Representatives.
But there is a big problem here and an obvious misrepresentation of facts. Nigerians hold an erroneous view that National Assembly members earn fat salaries. While failing to hold their local government chairmen and governors to account, the electorate wrongfully target lawmakers who are primarily elected to make laws.
No one can blame the people. In the recent past, senators were handsomely rewarded, especially during oversight functions. Heads of Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), hitherto, prepared fat honorariums for lawmakers.
Juicy committee chairmen were very benevolent and their constituents were well fed. Scholarships were freely given. Medical bills of constituents were promptly paid. Even dowries were paid for men who could not afford them.
That was Nigeria of old before change happened. Not only that, the Treasury Single Account (TSA) also happened. Revenue generating agencies, who in the past, allegedly doled out millions of naira to lawmakers during oversight functions, have become lepers. Their financial feet have been cut off and they can no longer fund ostentatious expenses and lifestyles of senators.
In the current Senate, some lawmakers are yet to pay off loans they incurred during the 2015 elections. This is because there is no money. They depend on their meager salaries and allowances, which come irregularly.  Some lawmakers have even deserted their constituencies, not out of mischief, but because they are broke. People are not aware of these sad realities. Being a member of the National Assembly is no longer lucrative.
The Senate leadership vis-à-vis the media team of the National Assembly, have failed to explain to Nigerians that ‘market shares are down’ and that ‘business is no longer moving’.
This is the big challenge and as we move closer to the 2019 general elections, more senators will likely face the wrath of their constituencies. Unlike local government chairmen and governors, senators do not have the financial war chests to hire private and police security.
Let examine recent instances. In April 2016, angry youths in Ningi town, Bauchi State, allegedly attacked a senator. One of the youths at the scene reportedly said that the anger against the senator, who was attending to a bereaved friend, reached the high heavens when a prominent local politician, took the microphone to tell the audience that the lawmaker had betrayed his people by supporting the Senate President, Bukola Saraki, who was viewed then as an enemy of President Muhammadu Buhari.
According to the unnamed youth, the senator had not visited the town since winning his election.  He said things got uglier when three youngsters physically rough-handled the senator, who fled and was later saved from the youths by the chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the locality. The party chieftain was said to have smuggled him out of the area in a small car. While being driven away, with the youths chasing the vehicle and hurling objects, the senator was said to have kept promising to change his ways.
In May 2016, some youths suspected to be political thugs, set ablaze the residence of Senator Kabiru Gaya, in Gaya Local Government area of Kano State. The youths also set ablaze the campaign office and poultry farm of the House of Representatives member from the area, Alhaji Abdullahi Mahmoud. The youths were reportedly protesting the alleged failure of the two politicians to fulfill the promises they made to them during the electioneering campaigns in 2015.
In April 2017, the senator representing Katsina South, Abu Ibrahim and House of Representatives member, Alhaji Amiru Tukur, escaped  mob attack at a political event organized by Katsina State chapter of APC.
The event was part of the APC rally where the ruling party was accepting those decamping from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA) and Peoples Democratic Movement (PDM). It reportedly took combined teams of security personnel to rescue notable politicians including the governor’s entourage.
Some vehicles in the entourage of the governor were reportedly smashed by irate youths, while the security personnel used teargas to disperse the crowds.
Also in April 2017, a member of the House of Representatives from Niger East Senatorial Zone of Niger State was allegedly beaten to a pulp by angry youths in his constituency.
The lawmaker was attacked when he went to one of the villages in his constituency to attend a political meeting. His vehicle was reportedly vandalized by the youths who were angry that he had not visited them since his election in 2015.
One of the youths reportedly slapped him and another hit him in the stomach, making him to fall to the ground. It then became a free for all as every youth there tried to take their pound of flesh from the politician.
He was rescued by officers of the Niger State Police Command who were invited by some people at the scene of the assault.
Niger Police spokesman, Bala Elkana confirmed the incident then and said “It was a politically-motivated attack.” Three persons were arrested.
Recently, the Leader of the Senate, Senator Ahmad Lawan, dispelled rumours that his constituents attacked him when he attended a wedding at his hometown.
For now, southern lawmakers appear to be insulated from the series of attacks, but it may not be for too long.
Apparently oblivious to what was to be expected, senators, during the 2015 general elections, made unrealistic campaign promises.
Faced by the current excruciating economic recession, almost all the lawmakers are cash-strapped and obviously lack the resources to fulfill those grandiose promises.
With the exception of a few, over 90 per cent of the current senators will likely seek re-election. They will be compelled to travel to their constituencies and campaign.
They will be reminded of promises made, but not fulfilled. This is where the problem lies. What happens after, no one can tell. If senators are unable to provide satisfactory answers, stones may fly in the air. I am not a prophet of doom. I am only stating the obvious.
This piece is also an appeal to senators to put their ‘houses’ in order, ahead of the rainy day. We do not have to get there. This can be prevented. But the needful must be done and very fast too, to avert the evil day.

One more thing…
On Thursday, May 25th, 2017, the Senate broke an embarrassing jinx. It passed the Petroleum Industry Governance Bill (PIGB). It’s a major achievement for the Eight Senate and a perfect gift to Nigerians, just few days to the celebration of its second year anniversary.
The bill was conceived by the Senate President, Saraki, but was sponsored by Senator Tayo Alaosoadura who heads the Petroleum Upstream Committee. The passage of the first tranche of the bill did not come freely. Senators fought for it.
In no time, the House of Representatives will likely give its concurrence. The big and likely challenge will be the presidential assent. With the passage of the bill, the powers of the President have been substantially reduced. This maybe resisted and the presidency may likely want to play politics.
The president may withhold his assent. If that happens, will the National Assembly muster the courage to override the president’s veto? This has only happened once in the National Assembly since 1999. Both chambers overrode the veto of President Olusegun Obasanjo and passed into law, the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) bill.

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