— Sani: Monkeys carted away lawmakers’ millions
The caucus had sacked Sen. Abdullahi Adamu as its chairman on Wednesday, following allegations of misappropriating N70m belonging to the group.
Deputy President of the Senate, Ike Ekweremadu who presided over Tuesday’s plenary, announced the leadership change.
Briefing Newsmen after Plenary, Senator Shehu Sani said that since the money could not be accounted for, maybe this time monkeys have made away with the money.
“There are some things some of my colleagues will not say but I’m not used to holding back. When we assumed office, Senator Ahmed Lawan tendered the sum of N70 million to the 8t Senate. That N70 million was money gathered from the 7th Senate. It was handed over to northern senators of 8th Senate. The rumours going round, which I don’t know whether it’s true but I believe other senators know, is the fact that there were allegations that some monkeys raided the farm house of some of the executives of the northern senators forum and carted away some of this money.
“I think, this country is becoming a huge joke. First of all, it was the rodents that drove away the president and then we now have snakes consuming about N36 million and now we have monkeys raiding farmhouse. So, they don’t want this to be said but I believe that we should be very clear.”
Sen. Sani was in the news recently for storming the headquarters of the JAMB office with snake charmers to catch the money swallowing snake.
The Northern Senators’ Forum, yesterday, sacked the former Governor of Nasarawa State and its Chairman, Senator Abdullahi Adamu (APC, Nasarawa West), over alleged mismanagement of N70 million under his custody.
The Forum also replaced Adamu with the former Governor of Sokoto State and Senator representing Sokoto North Senatorial District on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Aliyu Magatakarda Wamakko.
A member of the Forum, Senator Shehu Sani, gave insight into the disappearance of the N70 million.
Sani told reporters that monkeys allegedly carted away the money after they raided the farm house of the former governor.
“The rumours going round whether it is true, but I believe most of the senators know is the fact. There were allegations that some monkeys raided the farm house of some of the executives in Northern Senators Forum and carted away some of these monies.
“I think this country is becoming a huge joke. First of all, it was the rodents that drove away the President and we now have snakes consuming about N36 million, and now you have monkeys. So, they don’t want this to be said, but I believe that it should be very clear.”
When contacted for his comment, Adamu said that he was not ready to say anything with respect to his sudden sack, stating that he would react at the appropriate time if necessary.
The Deputy President of the Senate, Dr. Ike Ekweremadu, who presided over the session, read the letter addressed to the Senate by the Forum, stating that it had resolved to remove Adamu and appoint Wamakko as its new chairman.
Ekweremadu, while reading the letter, said that the Forum sacked its former leader based on financial misconduct, which it claimed had been investigated and it was true.
The letter reads in part: “This is to inform the Senate that the majority signatories of this letter are members of the Northern Senators Forum.
“We have removed Senator Abdullahi Adamu as Chairman of the Northern Senators Forum for financial mismanagement and maladministration. We announce his immediate replacement with Senator Aliyu Wamakko,” the letter said.
Confirming the action of the Northern senators to relieve Adamu of the chairmanship position based on alleged financial impropriety, the spokesman for the Forum, Senator Dino Melaye, said that monies belonging to the body were spent without the knowledge of other executive officers and members.
He also noted that part of the reasons Adamu was removed was because under his leadership, critical decisions were being taken without consulting other stakeholders of the Forum.
Melaye further posited that the Forum had become moribund and ineffective under the Nasarawa-born lawmaker, stressing that the change in the Forum’s leadership had become absolutely necessary.
His words: “All I will just say is simple, that the decision of the majority of the Northern Senators’ Forum is that they want to have a change of leadership. And the allegations investigated and found out to be true is that there was financial mismanagement; that monies were spent without consent of members and excos were not contacted, and that the organisation is becoming moribund, ineffective.
“We are not doing the things that we are supposed to do and we need to inject some vibrancy into the organisation, and that many positions have been taken without consulting with the exco and other members of the organisation.”
Melaye, however, refused to disclose the exact amount that was involved, challenging journalists to carry out independent investigations to establish whether or not it was N70 million that was actually mismanaged by Adamu’s administration.
On his part, Sani stated that under Adamu’s leadership, the forum could not account for part of the money inherited from the Senate, totalling N70 million.
He said: “When we resumed as senators of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and assumed office, Senator Ahmad Lawan tendered the sum of N70 million to the 8th Senate of the Northern Senators Forum. It was money gathered by the Forum in the 7th Senate.”
However, investigations carried out by New Telegraph revealed that the sack of Adamu was not unconnected with the role he played in the Senate last week alongside other nine senators, when the Senate was thrown into commotion, during the consideration and adoption of the conference report of its committee on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Act Amendment Bill.
The crisis broke between senators considered to be pro-Buhari and others who by their body language, are not favourably disposed to his re-election bid in 2019 presidential elections.
The Conference Committee of the Senate and the House of Representatives had adopted the report penultimate week, approving the reordering of the sequence of general elections, contrary to what INEC had arranged for 2019 general polls.
During the debate, the pro-Buhari senators, led by Adamu, made desperate efforts to stop the apex legislative chamber from adopting the report by raising series of point of order and citing constitutional provisions to persuade their colleagues, but to no avail.
Summarily, the senators who were 10 in number, felt humiliated by Saraki’s ruling in support of the adoption of the report, and then walked out of the chamber to address the press.
While briefing journalists, the lawmakers who took turn to condemn the amendment to the Electoral Act, insinuated that the decision of the Senate to tinker with the Act and reorder the election sequence was targeted at frustrating President Muhammadu Buhari in 2019.
Apart from offending the Senate through his action on the floor concerning the reordering of election sequence, Adamu also addressed a press conference in Abuja on Monday, where he heavily knocked former President Olusegun Obasanjo over his recent letter to President Buhari.
In his elaborate briefing, Adamu stated that Obasanjo ought to have been committed to prison by Buhari for spending so much money belonging to Nigerians to pursue his botched third-term plan.
Some sources close to the Senate, however, said that the accumulation of his attacks on the Chamber and Obasanjo would have been part of the reasons for his sack.
The sources said that even though the former President appeared to have strained relationship with the Senate, yet some senators are loyal to him and are ready to fight for him.
Meanwhile, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege, yesterday, apologised to the Senate for his offensive comments against the Chamber on the amendment to the Electoral Act, to reorder the sequence of elections.
Omo-Agege, who is now facing investigation by the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions, for accusing the Senate of hurriedly amending the Electoral Act to hunt, hurt and frustrate Buhari in 2019, begged his colleagues for forgiveness during plenary.
His words: “Yesterday, I was not here. My colleague and my brother, Senator Dino Melaye brought a motion under Privileges which is in Order 15 of the Senate Standing Rules. Mr. President, I rose as a consequent, on the debate on the sequence of elections in the Electoral Act amendment which was passed last week Wednesday.
“In the course of that debate and subsequent upon that, I addressed the media at the press centre. I made certain remarks during that interview which my attention has been drawn to that the comments are offensive, not just to Senator Dino Melaye, but to the entire Senate.
“I rise to apologise to the leadership and the entire Senate for those remarks. I take back whatever I said. Thank you Mr. President.”
Responding to his apology, Ekweremadu commended him for his courage to make open apology to his colleagues.
