Tag: 10th Senate

Budget-padding controversy: ACF knocks Senate for suspending Ningi

Aminu Imam

Pan-northern socio-political organisation, Arewa Consultative Forum, (ACF), yesterday, condemned the suspension of Senator Abdul Ningi over the alleged padding of the 2024 Budget to the tune of N3.7tn by the Senate. Ningi had, in an earlier interview, made the allegation that culminated in his three-month suspension for what the 10th Senate labelled an unfounded allegation. However, the pan-northern organisation noted with regret that rather than suspending the Senator representing Bauchi North, the red chamber should have allowed an independent investigation into the matter. The ACF, through its National Publicity Secretary,…

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Yar’adua emerges chairman of Northern Senators’ Forum

Aminu Imam

Senator Abdul-Aziz Yar’Adua (APC-Katsina) has emerged as chairman, Northern Senators’ Forum (NSF). Yar’Adua emerged after a meeting of the group in Abuja on Thursday. He takes over from Sen. Abdul Ningi (PDP-Bauchi), who resigned from the position after his suspension by the Senate over his allegations that the 2024 Budget was padded. Yar’Adua, who is chairman Senate committee on Army, in his acceptance speech, expressed gratitude to his colleagues for the confidence reposed in him. “I express gratitude to my colleagues for the confidence reposed in me following the resignation…

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Akpabio: CNG lambast Sen. Bamidele over alleged profiling of Northern Senators

Aminu Imam

The North-East Chapter of the Coalition of Northern Groups (CNG), said it has observed with shock, that a ranking senator, Michael Opeyemi Bamidele, allegedly stooped so low to profile northern senators, and by implication, the northern people for planning to stage what he described as “a civilian coup” against the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio. CNG, in an issued statement by its Zonal Coordinator, Isah Abubakar Waziri in Abuja yesterday, said Senator Bamidele descended further to portray northerners as unreliable who are hell-bent on removing Akpabio as the President of the…

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Constituency Projects: “Each senator got N200m; but presiding officers received more” – Ndume

Aminu Imam

Chief Whip of the 10th Senate, Ali Ndume, has said each senator was allocated N200 million for constituency projects in the 2024 Budget. Over the past few days, controversy has ensued over the 2024 budget, amid allegations of padding and project insertions. Recall that last Saturday, Abdul Ningi, who is the Senator representing Bauchi-Central, stirred controversy when he alleged that the budget was padded with the sum of N3 trillion by the Senate. Speaking in an interview during a television programme on Wednesday, Ndume said 10 senators, who are leaders, including…

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Alleged Budget-padding: CISLAC tackles Senate over Ningi’s suspension

Aminu Imam

The Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre, (CISLAC)/Transparency International in Nigeria (TI-Nigeria), yesterday, condemned the Senate’s resolution to suspend Senator Abdul Ningi over the allegation on the N3 trillion alleged budget padding in the 2024 Appropriation Act. The CISLAC Executive Director, Comrade Auwal Ibrahim Musa Rafsanjani, who expressed the concern via a statement titled: ‘Senator Ningi: CISLAC expresses worries over attacks on freedom of expression, oppositions’ rights and independence,’ warned against abuse of the rule of law. He said: “The Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC)/Transparency International in Nigeria (TI-Nigeria) is…

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N3.7tr Budget-Padding allegation: Senate suspends Ningi for 3 months

Aminu Imam

The Senate has suspended Senator Abdul Ningi for three months over his claim that the 2024 Budget was padded to the tune of N3.7 trillion. Ningi, a member of the Peoples Democratic Party, (PDP), is the Chairman, Senate Committee on Population, and he represents Bauchi-Central. While the parties called for a probe into the allegation, some northern senators disowned the claims made by Ningi, saying the Bauchi State senator did not speak for them. The Bauchi senator, however, maintained his position yesterday that N3.7tn could not be accounted for in…

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“Suspending Ningi without investigation amounts to cover-up, legislative cowardice” – HURIWA

Aminu Imam

Civil Rights Advocacy group, HURIWA, has described the suspension order slammed on Senator Abdul Ningi as a coordinated cover-up and legislative blackmail aimed at smashing the weighty allegations of budget padding raised by the Bauchi State-born lawmaker. Recall that Senator Abdul Ningi had insisted that about N3 trillion of the N28 trillion 2024 Budget had no subhead suggesting that the Godswill Akpabio-led Senate may have padded the Budget. HURIWA insisted that the suspension of Senator Ningi was hasty and will inevitably be interpreted as a ploy by National Assembly cover…

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Senate Screening: S/E nominee rejects Tinubu’s nomination to CBN Board

Aminu Imam

The South-East nominee for membership of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Board of Directors, Urum Kalu Eke, has rejected his appointment. Eke declined his nomination by shunning the Senate Committee’s scheduled screening exercise, which was attended by other four nominees. This was disclosed at Senate plenary yesterday, by the chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Insurance and other Financial Institutions, Senator Adetokunbo Abiru, while presenting his Committee’s report on the screening of the CBN Board of Director-nominees. Following the presentation and adoption of the report, the Senate, however,…

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Senate to conclude 1999 Constitution review in 2yrs – Jibrin

Aminu Imam

Deputy President of the Senate and chairman of the 1999 Constitution Review Committee, Barau Jibrin, has said that the Constitutional review would be concluded within two years. The chairman stated this on Wednesday, during the inaugural meeting of the 45-member committee constituted last week by the Senate. He informed that the steering committee of the Constitutional review committee would submit a work plan and a process map with timelines to be presented for consideration and approval by members in the next meeting. Jibrin assured that the committee would work to…

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Senate approves Tinubu’s $7.4 billion, €100 million 2022-2024 external borrowing plan

Aminu Imam

The Senate has approved President Bola Tinubu’s request on the 2022-2024 external borrowing rolling plan of $7.4 billion and 100 million Euros. This followed the adoption of the report of the Senate committee on local and foreign debt at plenary. Presenting the report, the vice chairman of the committee, Sen. Haruna Manu, said the committee noted with utmost importance the genuine and very serious concerns of Nigerians about the level and sustainability, serviceability of the nation’s borrowing activities in the last decade. According to him, the debt service figures constitute…

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