RECESSION: Ekweremadu Tackles Saraki

Deputy President of the Senate, Ike Ekweremadu and Senator George Akume (APC, Benue) yesterday opposed the President of the Senate, Bukola Saraki, on his suggestion that the Federal Government should sell some national assets to boost the nation’s shrinking foreign reserves.

Saraki had, on Tuesday, enjoined the executive to increase the dwindling foreign reserves by selling some important national assets, including part sale of the Nigeria Liquified Natural Gas (NLNG) Holdings and other resources.

But contributing to the debate on the economy yesterday during plenary, Ekweremadu cautioned the Federal Government against selling the national assets in order to raise money to fund the ailing economy.

How I Increase My Blokos Size & Stopped Premature Ejaculation Issues 

That Scattered My Relationship For 2years.. Click HERE for Details

He pointed out that other economies of the world that experienced recession did not sell their assets to rescue the situation, urging government instead to fall back on oil revenue and perhaps sell the nonperforming assets, in order not to harm posterity. Ekweremadu said, “I have heard about the issue of selling of our assets.

I need to caution that other countries are not doing the same. United Arab Emirates does not even allow you to come close to their oil wells talk less of selling them. And, of course, a country like Saudi Arabia, their budget each year is run by investments from their oil revenue while other countries are investing.

“I am sure we will not be fair to the next generation if we sell our assets because of the current state of the economy. So, if we must sell, we have to sell the non-performing assets so that people can turn them around and create employment.”

Akume also kicked against the recommendation by Saraki for government to sell some national assets. He said: “We are making a mistake here, what we are intending to do is to very unpatriotically ensure that those who are within the bracket of the stolen dollars will still come to buy.

I believe that this is not the time to strip these assets. We should rather focus on industrialisation through agriculture and try to revamp this economy.” Proffering solutions to the recession, Ekweremadu called for restructuring of the federation.

“We need to unbundle this Federal Government from the security, to power, to agriculture, to social sectors. A situation where the Federal Government is in charge of everything is not helpful.

We need to unbundle this country, if you like call it restructuring. It might be a long term strategy and it might be in phases, but it is something that we need to do quickly,” he said. The Deputy Senate President further called on President Muhammadu Buhari to take a critical look at his cabinet, with a view to putting square pegs in square holes, to be able to make his ministers and advisers function more effectively “The president needs to look at his cabinet. He has to put square pegs in square holes.

Your Excellency, distinguished colleagues, Udo Udoma is my friend, an accomplished lawyer for that matter. But in fairness to him, I believe he can do better in another ministry especially like Trade and Investment, but certainly not Budget and Planning.

“The Minister for Finance can do much better in another ministry. At this critical time, we need somebody who is more experienced to man the Ministry of Finance so that he can coordinate the strategies for this recovery,” he said.

Suggesting short-term measures to solving the problem at hand, Ekweremadu advised Buhari to release the money in the Treasury Single Account (TSA), and also the recovered looted funds, so that there would be sufficient money in circulation to enable people to do business.

But Senator Shehu Sani, in his contribution, stated that removing the Minister of Finance “won’t be able to get us out of this problem because this recession is not in Nigeria alone; it is in all countries that are dependent on oil revenue.” Other senators who contributed to the debate urged the Federal Government to take drastic and urgent steps to address the economic crisis in the country.

New Telegraph   

RECESSION: The Senate Recommends 'Sack' Of Finance Minister, Adeosun, Udoma, Others

The Senate on Tuesday explained that the level of the economic recession being witnessed requires sincere approach by the federal government in a manner that those who have the competence should be allowed to serve in critical sectors of the economy.

Senate Leader, Ali Ndume in his speech enjoined Senators to be focused on forward-looking, noting that the phenomenon was a global one which other countries have successfully overcome.

“The economic recession was not caused by the present government, but a global one and those countries successfully came out of it,” he noted.

Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu on his part, emphasised on reshuffling of the cabinet by President Buhari to enable him put competent persons I critical sectors.

How I Increase My Blokos Size & Stopped Premature Ejaculation Issues 

That Scattered My Relationship For 2years.. Click HERE for Details 

“Distinguished Senators, look at my friend Senator Udo Udoma, Minister of Budget and National Planning, as a lawyer, what can he do? He can be at his best in a sector related to his area of competence. ”

Ekweremadu added:” The Minister of Finance, Mrs Kemi Adeosun can be assigned to another ministry to give way to a more competent person because of the situation at hand. ”

He, however, cautioned against sales of government assets as being canvassed by some experts, while urging government to learn from Saudi Arabia when they decided to make foreign investors to invest in their assets when they were in recession which eventually paid off.

Proffering solutions further, Ekweremadu called for renegotiation with oil majors on percentages been remitted to government, recalling that late Gen. Sani Apache made them to increase their remittances to government and it worked.

Dino Melaye (APC), Kogi West Senatorial District, on his part called for outright sack of the economic team as well as some Ministers, explaining some have failed the nation.

“Mr Senate President, we have to tell ourselves the truth at this time of the day, some Minister and Buhari’s economic team have failed and they should be sacked,” he insisted.

Senator George Akume (APC), Benue South Senatorial District in his submission recalled that former President, Olusegun Obasanjo consciously saved over $60billion in Nigeria’s foreign reserve between 1999 and 2003, lamenting that that money was stolen by successive administration.

He wondered that when former Central Bank governor, Sanusi cried out that $20billion was missing, government at that time was busy countering, a situation he explained contributed to the present situation.

Shehu Sani (APC), Kaduna Central questioned sharing formula of the federal monthly allocations, saying, it make Nigeria citizens to be lazy.

According to him: “Nigeria has been in recession and what is happening is that the situation has only been aggravated as a result of laziness and corruption by past administrations.”

Click Here To Get Latest Football Betting Tip That Guarantee You With Winnings. Meet Hot Ladies Online An Buy Goods At Affordable Prices  

Plot To Oust EKWEREMADU THICKENS As 'Kinsmen' Join Force

The plot to oust the Deputy President of Nigerian Senate, Ike Ekweremadu thickens as All Progressives Congress, APC members from his geopolitical zone, the south-East, who once had sympathy for him have eventually joined force to ensure his ouster.

Report according to Punch Newspaper on Sunday suggests that the All Progressives Congress South-East caucus appears willing to work with the party to remove the Deputy Senate President from office.

The party leaders from the zone are particularly interested in his removal to boost the party’s strength, our source gathered. They argued that, with Ekweremadu as the Deputy Senate President would strengthen the Opposition  Peoples Democratic Party in the region at the detriment of the APC, Punch Newspaper quoted

A leading party member from the zone, who asked not to be named for fear of retribution said to our source, “We are not ignorant, we know that the new Senator from our zone, being a green horn and the only one, cannot unseat Ekweremadu.

“We will be willing to trade him in for a grade (A) ministry and a choice committee.

“Ekweremadu’s continued stay as the Deputy Senate President may hamper the growth of the APC in our zone.”

When contacted, the party’s National Vice-Chairman in charge of the South-East, Emma Eneukwu, said he was at a zonal meeting and was not in a position to take questions.

However, a chieftain of the party and member of the South-East caucus, Mr. Osita Okechukwu, said, “To be honest we candidly advise Ekweremadu to step down for our brother, Sen. Ben Uwajumogu.

“His first excuse for usurping the APC’s slot was to represent Ndigbo. Now that Ndigbo has secured a Senate seat, good conscience and equity demands his voluntary exist.”

Okechukwu, who is now the Director General of the Voice of  Nigeria, in response to a question on why he was pushing the ethnic card, said, “He (Ekweremadu) is the one who boasted with the ethnic card. Honour dictates his exist simple and short.”

Also a member of the Senate APC caucus, Senator Adesoji Akanbi (Oyo-South), who is also a member of the anti-Saraki Senate Unity Forum,  said the party was weighing its options on how to handle the Ekweremadu issue.

He told one of our correspondents, “The leadership of the APC will decide on who replaces Ekweremadu only after the party has succeeded in sacking him. But I think (the Majority Leader of the Senate) Senator Ali Ndume is qualified to replace Ekweremadu.

“The party will come up with several options and at that point in time, the replacement will surely come from the party. Nobody will move against the party. The party will liaise with us and we will all agree.”

Another member of the APC caucus, who spoke to Sunday PUNCH  on condition of anonymity, said the ruling party was banking on the Senate Standing Rules forgery case to remove Ekweremadu.

He noted that the APC was aware that Saraki and Ekweremadu enjoy the backing of the majority of senators making it difficult to get a two-third of the senators to end their leadership.

The senator said it would be after the Deputy Senate President had been sacked that the party would decide on who should replace him.

The lawmaker said, “The Standing Rule document was forged. I can assure you. It is most likely that when a judgment is delivered on the case, it will show that the leadership of the Red Chamber is null and void. Definitely, they will go. But how long will the case last, I don’t know; it all depends on the Federal Government.”

“It is certain that the document was forged and the court may sack the leadership of the Senate eventually. They are just buying time. Should the judgment be against them, they will appeal. That is why I said I don’t know how long the case will last, but they will go.”

The senator also hinted that should the alleged forged rules be voided by the court, lawmakers in the chamber would have to vote for the leadership of the Senate openly.

He said it was then that the APC senators who voted for Saraki and Ekweremadu, which was against the choice of the party, would fall back to the side of the party.

He said, “The real Standing Rule says that if there is a division, everybody will stand up and declare where they stand. How can you then stand before the camera and vote against your party?

“No APC senator will stand up and vote against the party openly on live TV. At that state, every lawmaker must stand up and declare where they stand and who they are voting for.”

It may be recalled that the PDP through its National Publicity Secretary, Dayo Adeyeye cautioned the APC against towing the path of hounding the DSP out of office.

He said,”The statement by the APC National Chairman confirmed our suspicions about a sinister plot to remove the Deputy Senate President.

“We advise them against this I’ll advised venture because the Senate is a bipartisan Senate and they are free by law to elect their leaders.”

Speaking in a similar vein, Mazi Bismarck Oji, Exec Director, Centre for the Advancement of Literacy and Leadership said people like the Imo State governor who are championing the cause to remove the DSP are wasting their time.

He said, “Nobody takes Rochas seriously in the South East.  He could not secure any principal office for two APC Reps from SE, specifically from his Imo State.

“He couldn’t secure any grade A ministry for South East. In fact, the brainy Prof and former VC from Imo was even made a junior Minister to someone that does not hold a PhD.

“There’s no service Chief from South East  and South East has nobody in the Security Council. In fact, Rochas is making all these noise to drawn or divert attention from the protests over the quality of election that produced the APC Senator elect. For 99 percent of SE, a bird in hand is worth more than a billion in bush.”

How I Increase My Blokos Size & Stopped Premature Ejaculation Issues That Scattered My Relationship For 2years.. Click HERE for Details

Avowed APC Candidate To Succeed Ekweremadu As Deputy Sen. President Wins Imo North Senatorial Rerun

Mr. Ben Uwajumogu who was earlier this week avowed by Imo State Governor Rochas Owelle Okorocha that he would succed the embattled Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu has been declared the winner by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) of Imo North Senatorial District rerun election held on July 28.

Ekweremadu and his boss, Bukola Saraki, with two national assembly staffs are currently facing corruption charges bothering on forgery of Senate Standing Order.

Uwajumogu scored 56,076 votes to defeat Mr Athan Achonu of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) who scored 43, 815 votes. Prof. Arinze Agbogu, the INEC Returning Officer for Imo North Senatorial District, who announced the result in the early hours of Friday, said the outcome was a summation of scores of July 23 and that of July 28 exercise.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalled that Uwajumogu, had scored 48,921 on July 23, while Achonu, of the PDP, scored 40, 142 votes which made INEC to declare the rerun inconclusive.

Agbogu said that available data before him showed that Uwajumogu had majority of lawful votes cast, and therefore returned elected for the Imo North Senatorial District.

Similarly, INEC declared Mr Nkenna Nzeruo of the APC winner of Oru East State Constituency, while Mr Collins Chiji also of APC was declared winner for Isiala Mbano State Constituency.

The two state constituencies’ elections were equally declared inconclusive due to reported cases of violence that marred the exercise in some communities in the two areas on July 23.

Uwajumogu told journalists in Owerri that he was highly elated over the victory, adding “my gratitude goes more to Gov. Rochas Okorocha whose structure helped me to win this senatorial election’’.

Meanwhile, the Imo State Governor,  Okorocha has said the Deputy Senate president, Ike Ekweremadu would soon be ousted from office with the assured victory of the All Progressive Congress(APC) in the Imo North Senatorial re- run poll held last Saturday, but declared inconclusive

This was as he slammed the Deputy Senate president for relocating to Imo state during the election.

The Imo state Governor , who spoke  through his Chief Press Secretary, Sam Onwuemeodo, stated  that the position of Senator Ike Ekweremadu as the Deputy Senate president is at the moment under heavy threat as the APC Senator in the waiting from Imo State Benjamin Uwajumogu will take over the seat as it is an aberration that a PDP senator from the South-East is deputy to an APC Senate President because, before now, APC could not produce a senator from the South-East zone.

According  to Okorocha , “Senator Ekweremadu had known that such development was not only feasible but inevitable and that was why he fully funded the candidate of the PDP in the re-run senatorial poll in Okigwe zone and also re-located to the state three days to the election date.

He added , the victory of the APC in the re-run poll for Okigwe senatorial zone is a victory for the whole of South-East APC in particular and the people of the geo-political zone in general”.

He alleged that the PDP in the state had never won any election since 2003, but had written results for themselves using intimidation and harassment to achieve their goal of producing results and forcing INEC to declare them winners on the basis of the false results.

However, he noted that with the results recorded  in the last Saturday’s re-run election in the affected areas only shows the new spirit of APC in the state where Benjamin Uwajumogu is leading with  8,000 votes even though the election was declared inconclusive.

Meanwhile, Ekweremadu in a sreaction said the Imo State governor is on a wild goose chase. In a statement issued by his Special Adviser on Media, Mr Uche Anichukwu, the Deputy Senate President  he was not bothered by the “wishful” prospect of an APC senator from the South East.

Ekweremadu said contrary to the allegation by Okorocha  that he was in Imo State  during the rerun poll so as to influence the result,  he was actually in his constituency for his annual Ikeoha Scholarship and Bursary Awards/Adult Literacy Day same day the rerun poll held, noting that the last time he visited Imo was in 2015.

He  wondered how Okorocha would be able to appoint a deputy senate president for the Senate, when he could secure any principal office for any of the two House of Representatives members in Imo State.

“The Deputy President of the Senate visited Imo State for the last time in 2015. It is also instructive that the governor’s claim comes on the heels of another statement by some All Progressives Congress (APC) elements in Ezeagu Local Government Area on Sunday where they whined bitterly over the huge solidarity shown by the good people, stakeholders, and traditional rulers of Enugu State to Senator Ekweremadu during his annual Ikeoha Scholarship and Bursary Awards/Adult Literacy Day at the Council headquarters on the same Saturday, June 23, 2016.

“For the same party to also claim that the same Ekweremadu who was empowering his people at Ezeagu in a well reported event on the same Saturday was also in in Imo State at the same time to influence election is just another showcase of the buffet of lies, deceit, and confusion that has become the order of the day in the ruling party”.

“The Senate has a ranking rule, and if Okorocha was not able to secure a principal office, even Deputy Majority Whip for the two House of Representatives Members from Imo State, it is left to imagination how he would be able to appoint a Deputy President for the Senate. He is on a wild goose chase”.

He advised the Imo governor and APC leaders in the South East  to “preoccupy themselves with ending the invasions and killings by purported herdsmen, gross marginalization of Ndigbo in the distribution of opportunities and the blessings of democracy as well as the worrisome trend of inconclusive elections”.

Senator Ike Ekweremadu is facing Senate Standing  Order forgery trial with the President of the Senate, Dr. Bukola Saraki and tow other officials of the national assembly.

How I Increase My Blokos Size & Stopped Premature Ejaculation Issues That Scattered My Relationship For 2years.. Click HERE for Details

Plots To UNSEAT Ekweremadu Thicken As APC Give Saraki "A-Must-Condition' For Peace

Ike Ekweremadu

The ruling All Progressives Congress, APC has not rested in its plot to unseat the Deputy President of the Senate, Ike Ekweremadu, even it will make peace with Dr. Bukola Saraki, the embattled President of the Senate.

Despite last week overture by Saraki to make peace with his party, some Chieftains of the ruling APC have urged him to ensure he unseat his Deputy if he indeed wants to make peace with the party, Punch Newspaper reports this morning.

APC was not comfortable with Ekweremadu as the deputy senate president and Saraki should look for a way of  “getting him out,” A Chief who pleaded not to be named confided in our source

He said that besides being a PDP member, the deputy senate president had not hidden his disdain for the President Muhammadu Buhari administration.

The party chieftain stated, “We are happy with what he (Saraki) did with the committees, but Ekweremadu cannot remain as the deputy senate president.  When the PDP was in power, opposition parties did not produce the deputy senate president.”

Another APC leader who spoke on condition of anonymity said, “What Saraki has done is not enough. Ekweremadu must leave that position.”

When contacted to comment on the claim that the APC was insisting on Ekweremadu’s removal, the National Chairman of the party, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, said, “No comment.”

Although, the APC was happy with the appointments, which the Senate President, Bukola Saraki, made in the committees of the upper chamber on Thursday, the party believed that for the peace process to complete, Ekweremadu must resign or be removed.

Saraki became the senate president in June last year against the wish of the APC, which supported the emergence of Senator Ahmed Lawan.

The former Kwara State governor  emerged as the senate president with the support of the his loyalists under the aegis of Like-Mind Senators comprising members of the Peoples Democratic Party  in the upper chamber and most of their colleagues in the APC.

It was reported last year that one of the conditions that the PDP gave to Saraki was to concede the deputy senate president seat to one of its members.

The senate president defied the APC when he ensured that his loyalists, except Senator Sola Adeyeye (Chief Whip) became the principal officers.

But on Thursday, Saraki began a peace move when he reshuffled senate panels and appointed his critics in the Senate Unity Forum as heads of “juicy committees.”

For example, the spokesman of the SUF, Senator Kabiru Marafa, became the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Petroleum Resources (Downstream), while Senator Oluremi  Tinubu was appointed the Chairperson of the Committee on the Environment.

Repeated calls to the mobile telephone number of the party’s National Secretary, Mai Bala Buni, were neither picked nor returned, a response to a text message sent to him was being awaited as of the time of filing this report.

How I Increase My Blokos Size & Stopped Premature Ejaculation Issues That Scattered My Relationship For 2years.. Click HERE for Details

BREAKING: Saraki Dumps APC 24hrs After Pledging Loyalty, Meets PDP Caucus, Jonathan

Fresh report suggests that the embattled President of the Nigerian Senate, Dr. Olubukola Saraki has defected back to former party, the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP

Saraki's reported defection comes in barely 24 hours when he reiterated his loyalty to his former Party APC.

According to an online news platform, Nigerian Times who exclusively reported on Saraki's defection, the Senate President unofficially defected to the PDP at a secret meeting with the PDP caucus yesterday evening at the Abuja home of his deputy in the Senate, Ike Ekeremadu at the Apo Legislative Quarters. 

Our source further revealed that, after the meeting,Ike Ekweremadu, Deputy Senate President, led a group of senators to Goodluck Jonathan’s Maitama home to brief him. The meeting with Jonathan is on going at press time.

Saraki has been facing prosecution at the Code of Conduct Tribunal for falsely declare assets.

A source who was at the meeting told Nigerian Times that Saraki, who has faced persecution from the leadership of his party, the All Progressives Congress (APC) decided to leave the party and return to the PDP, which he left in 2014 with five PDP Governors.

The source said Saraki says he will use the PDP as a platform to actualize his ambition. He added that Saraki is likely to take with him to the PDP, APC Senators loyal to him. This would affect the balance of power in the Senate as the PDP would most like upturn the APC’s majority in the Red Chamber.

“Saraki has finally had it with the APC and the Buhari government. He believes he has faced enough embarassment and persecution from them after his investments to help the party wrest power from the PDP, ” our source said. 

Last week, he was in Sokoto, on the pretext of condoling the family of late Umaru Shinkaffi. But sources familiar with the Saraki travails told this our source that he met with the Sultan of sokoto to prevail on President Mohammadu Buhari to pull back his loyalists are who bent on sending Saraki to jail. And as a last ditch effort, he got former senate presidents to visit Buhari earlier in the week.

Saraki’s defection back to the PDP will not come as a surprise to watchers of Nigerian politics. Since his emergence as President of the Senate, he has been at odds with his party, the APC over what the party feels was his decision to present himself as candidate for the Senate Presidency against the party’s wish. The APC’s preferred candidate, was Ahmed Lawan.

How I Increase My Blokos Size & Stopped Premature Ejaculation Issues That Scattered My Relationship For 2years.. Click HERE for

Saraki, Ekweremadu'll Know No Peace Until They Vacate Seat - Senate-Colleague Reveals

The leadership of the Senate under Senator Bukola Saraki and his Deputy, Ike Ekweremadu will not enjoy peace until they are pushed out of office, Senator Robert Ajayi Boroffice said on Wednesday.

Boroffice who was at the national secretariat of the All Progressives Congress (APC), to collect his nomination and expression of interest form to contest the party’s ticket for the Ondo State governorship election insisted that his group, Unity Forum, would continue to challenge the Bukola Saraki, Senate President, and Ike Ekweremadu, his deputy, until integrity is restored.

Senator Boroffice added that the Unity Forum where he belongs was fighting the current Senate leadership based on principle and not because they hate anybody.

Speaking with newsmen on Wednesday at the APC national secretariat in Abuja after picking form to contest the governorship primary election of the party, Boroface said his group would continue to “fight to ensure that the image of the Senate is redeemed.”

“I am one of those people who went to court to challenge the election of the Senate principals and I maintain that we have done that on principle not because we hate anybody. We want to defend the integrity of the Senate and the sanity of the rule of law.

“So, it is not that we are all working in the same direction, some of us are speaking out and I hope that you press men will give expression to our voices when we speak out.

“So, I can assure you that we will not be intimidated, we will continue to fight to ensure that the image of the Senate is redeemed so that any senator in Nigeria can raise his head anywhere in the world and described himself as senator.”

When asked to comment on the agitation for restructuring of the country, the two-term senator said, “The Senate again this year we pray that we have enough time to send this amendment to Mr. President to be assented to. If you look at it, you will see we are already restructuring with that with those amendment. Some of the things that they are in the exclusive list of the Federal Government have been brought to the concurrent list of the state and we are actually committed to true federalism, fiscal federalism.

“Some of us are in support of the state police, even though we know is subject to misuse. We believe that certain items that are now in the exclusive list of the Federal Government should be transferred to the state.

“So we are doing something about it, we are not making noise about it and by the time we get this amendment thing, many Nigerians would know we have done a good job not only in terms of structure but in the area of revenue allocation these are very important issue we cannot deny.”

According to the governorship aspirant, Ondo should be one of the best in terms of economic vibrancy, it’s an oil producing state, has second largest deposits of bitumen in the world.

“It has natural resources like cocoa, palm oil, coal but all these remain untapped…We need someone knowledgeable, that can help to create jobs, ease our ailing economy.

”We have ceramic, rubber, wood industries that are all dead. If we revive them we will not need to depend on the government. We will plug all leakages and develop a very vibrant economy.

“We will run a knowledge-driven economy. We must make sure Nigerians pay their taxes. There are countries that have no natural resource and are doing very well,” he said.

Daily Independent

How I Increase My Blokos Size & Stopped Premature Ejaculation 

Issues That Scattered My Relationship For 2years.. Click HERE for Details

REVEALED, What David Mark, Buhari, Others Discussed Secretly Yesterday At Aso Rock, The Saraki Connection

Following a secret meeting held between President Muhammadu Buhari, a former President of the Senate, David Mark and some notable former National Assembly members, a report according to ThisDay Newspaper suggests that the meeting was a fence-mending one between the Presidency and the upper legislators.

Although no statement was made on the reason for their meeting, speculation was rife that the former National Assembly leaders were on a fence-mending mission to settle the rift between the presidency and the Senate.

There has been no love lost between the presidency and the Senate since the emergence of Saraki as the Senate President and Senator Ike Ekweremadu as his deputy a year ago.

Saraki is currently facing trial for false assets declaration and with his deputy for the alleged forgery of the Senate rules, which both men have maintained were politically motivated by Buhari and his administration to force a leadership change in the Senate.

Also, while the Senate deems the forgery charges as undue interference in the affairs of the legislature, the executive has maintained that they were filed in the interest of justice and that of the public.

How I Increase My Blokos Size & Stopped Premature Ejaculation Issues That Scattered My Relationship For 2years.. Click HERE for Details

There were reports last week alleging that the Senate was contemplating initiating impeachment proceedings against Buhari but this was later denied by the Senate.

While Nnamani and Masari arrived together, Mark came later and was accompanied to Buhari’s office by the Senior Special Assistant to the President on National Assembly Matters (Senate), Ita Enang.

The Governor of Zamfara State and Chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) Abdulaziz Yari was also seen going into the president’s office. However, it was not clear whether he was part of the meeting or he met separately with Buhari.

Details of the meeting between Buhari and the former National Assembly leaders were not disclosed.

The executive and the legislature have been at loggerheads since the emergence of the current presiding officers of the National Assembly, especially the Senate. Indeed, the leadership of the National Assembly did not honour an invitation to the breakfast with the president recently.

Meanwhile, the Court of Appeal in Abuja has granted Saraki’s prayer to adjourn his appeal challenging the competence of the false declaration of assets charges brought against him by the federal government.

The court adjourned the appeal to October 6 to enable the justices of the court enjoy their vacation.

Though the appeal was slated for hearing, Saraki’s counsel, Chief Godwin Kanu Agabi (SAN), a former Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), Monday argued a motion praying the court to adjourn hearing of the suit in view of the yearly vacation of the court which began last week.

Agabi told the justices that they deserved their vacation having worked tirelessly in the past one year.

He also argued that since the court would not be able to give judgment during the vacation, there was no point hearing the matter so that judgment in the suit would not be hanging over their heads while on holiday.

Saraki’s stance was however vehemently opposed by the federal government, which claimed that the Senate president had already been granted three adjournments in the matter.

But Justice Abdul Aboki, who was presiding, cut in and demanded to know from the government’s lawyer, Mr. Rotimi Jacobs (SAN), what he stood to lose if Saraki’s request was granted.

Jacobs eventually agreed to the adjournment.

Justice Aboki in his brief ruling agreed with Saraki and adjourned hearing of the appeal till October 6 this year.

Saraki had challenged the competence of the false assets declaration criminal charges brought against him by the federal government, insisting that the charge was politically motivated and in bad faith.

In the objection argued by his counsel, Saraki said the charges could not be sustained in law since due process of law was not observed before it was initiated.

He had asked the court to quash or strike out the charges filed in September last year against him.

The Senate president also asked the Appeal Court to discharge him from the charges on the grounds that they were not competent and lawful in the eyes of the law.

Meanwhile, the Senate President Bukola Saraki Monday restated his loyalty to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and reiterated his belief that the President Muhammadu Buhari administration would redeem the electoral promises it made during the 2015 general election.

His statement came just as President Buhari met with former Senate Presidents David Mark and Ken Nnamani, and a former Speaker of the House of Representatives and Katsina State Governor Aminu Masari behind closed doors.

A statement by the Senate president’s Special Assistant, New Media, Bankole Omisore, said Saraki reaffirmed his loyalty to the party at the 10th Abuja Housing Show held at the International Conference Centre in Abuja, with the theme: Expanding Access to Affordable Housing in Africa.

The event featured top government officials and prominent stakeholders in the housing sector.

While acknowledging the presence of the APC National Organising Secretary, Senator Osita Izunaso, who spearheaded the discussions at the summit, Saraki said the APC government was absolutely committed to the social welfare of the people while affirming his unalloyed loyalty to the party.

“The Senate and the National Assembly as a whole believe very strongly that we must make a difference in the housing sector,” he said.

The Senate president, reacting to observations that the existing housing laws needed to be repealed and amended, charged the organisers of the summit to take further steps by forwarding a document of laws requiring amendments to the National Assembly.

“I assure you that action will be taken instantaneously,” Saraki promised.

Saraki further said the Senate had commenced the process of reviewing several laws affecting property rights and access to housing in the country.

According to him, the review of the National Housing Fund Act was ongoing and would be completed before the end of the year.

In his submission, Izunaso said housing deficit in Nigeria had been put at 17 million housing units.

“As at today, only 10 per cent of those who dream to own a house in the country can afford it, as against the 92 per cent home owners in Singapore.

“The central objective of the summit, however, is to come up with feasible strategies on how to end the problem of homelessness in Nigeria,” Izunaso said.

Present at the summit were the Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Raji Fashola; Kano State Governor, Abdullahi Umar Ganduje; Turkish Ambassador to Nigeria, Hakan Çakıl; Trade Union Congress (TUC) President, Mr. Bobboi Kaigama; and several investors.