From Fred Itua, Abuja
As the Senate resumes after its one month break, the fate of a suspended senator from Bauchi State, Abdul Ningi, hangs in the balance.
Ningi was suspended for three months before the Senate embarked on its Easter and Sallah break in March.
In an interview with the BBC Hausa Service, he had made some startling revelations about alleged padding of the 2024 budget to the tune of N3 trillion.
The Senate had, during the suspension, added a proviso that Ningi may be recalled if he tenders an apology. However, as at the time of filing in this report, he was yet to tender any apology.
Addressing newsmen yesterday, the Senate’s spokesman, Yemi Adaramodu, said Ningi’s suspension was not solely taken by the President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio.
He maintained that only the Senate can determine Ningi’s fate when it resumes today.
He said: “The second question on Ningi, yes, there was an infraction occasioned by the actions of our respected colleague, Senator Abdul Ningi, which made the Senate in an open public session, where he was given the opportunity to defend himself and for senators to talk on it, debated on it, then at the end of the day, it was found that an infraction had really occurred.
About 109 senators, except Senator Ningi, now decided that Ningi would be given a light disciplinary declaration, which gave him a three-month suspension from parliamentary activities.
“So, it is only the 108 senators who took that action that can call Ningi back. Yes, like I said, we have been on plenary break for about four weeks. So, when we resume tomorrow, as the case may be, he’s our colleague, if he makes a plea, then the senators will now look at it and then we take it on the merit of it.
“When we were not in the chamber, there have been so many insinuations.There have been reports that a letter has been written by the counsel to Ningi compelling the Senate President to recall Ningi within seven days.
“Then, when I was asked a question, I said, it’s not a matter of Ningi versus Akpabio. It’s Ningi versus the rest of the senators. So, it is not Akpabio, though our president, that took the action unilaterally and solely to suspend Ningi.
“So, it could not behoove on him to be the one who will now answer questions on the actions of all the senators, that all the senators will ask questions on their own behalf by the time we resume the plenary.
“We will resume plenary tomorrow (Tuesday). So, if the matter comes up, either directly or indirectly, either voluntarily or involuntarily, then we sit down together in the chamber and then we look at it on its own merit and consider an action to be taken. That’s what is happening about Ningi’s matter for now.”
Adaramodu said Ningi’s case is different from that of Ovie Omo-Agege, a former deputy president of the Senate, who allegedly stole a mace.
Adaramodu explained: “I’m not a law court. That’s one. The issue of Senator Omo-Agege and this one are distinctly very different. Secondly, for every organisation, either elected organisation, appointed organisation, or statutory organisation, the Civil Service is statutory organisation, judiciary is statutory organisation, then they have bodies that can discipline members.
“The NJC will sit down if there are complaints about any of the members in the judiciary. They sit down and then they give pronouncements. They are not hampered.
“The Civil Service, that is the Civil Service Commission, civil servants are employed statutorily and nobody can tamper with their tenure too.
“But, there is Civil Service Commission and they have their own disciplinary arm that when one errs, definitely, disciplinary actions can be taken. Now, can we find an organisation where there won’t be any discipline?
“Then, are we saying that the arm of government that we call the legislature is so deregulated in authority, in action, in operation, in instrumentality of organisational discipline, that when a member now does anything that can imperil either the corporate integrity or individual integrity of that organisation, they cannot be disciplined?
“If it is either 14 days by law or two days by law, discipline is discipline. That’s one aspect. The second aspect is this. As a legislator, you are elected to perform various roles.
“We have said it here, the only role that disciplinary action can curtail you from performing is sitting down with your colleagues in the chamber.
“Now, what we are saying is this. Anything that will make him sit down with other legislators, if he’s going to be made to sit down with other legislators in oversight, then it’s barred. If it’s going to be made to sit down with the colleagues in the chamber, that disciplined member will be barred.
“But if you advocate for your consistency by going there, have meetings with them, talk to them, attend meetings with them, you are not barred. But, what we are saying is that, can you run an organisation without discipline? If there is going to be discipline, then what is going to be the quality of the discipline vis-a-vis the enormity of the offence that you have committed?”