The Arewa Movement for Good Governance (AMGG), has expressed concern over the suspension of Senator Abdul Ningi from the National Assembly, causing his resignation as the chairperson of the Northern Senators’ Forum.
The group described Ningi’s suspension as an evasive move to distract attention from the issues raised, adding that the decision to suspend Ningi is a total violation of his right.
Senator Ningi, who represents Bauchi Central Senatorial District in the National Assembly, was suspended for three months over allegations of N3.7 trn padding of the 2024 Budget.
While expressing his displeasure at Ningi’s political travails, the convener of the group, Usman Bugaje said that the political trend in the country raised serious concerns about the National Assembly.
Bugaje said despite “so much noise that the actual budget box was empty”, neither the National Assembly nor the Presidency was yet to come out clean on the allegation, “beyond verbal dismissal of the allegation, which is expected of them.”
He added that there were also allegations that the lawmakers were given a certain amount in dollars and N160m worth of USVs jeep each to take their eyes off the due process of budget preparation and presentation.
He said; “Some would say from the fourth assembly inaugurated in 1999 – the amount then was in hundreds of millions. After years, this looting has grown geometrically into billions and with this assembly, it is now trillions. Now, we should understand why this country has refused to grow and develop.
“The National Assembly is an accomplice in the mass looting of the public treasury that has today become the budget process. Meanwhile, Nigerians are impoverished and marginalized; they struggle to survive with no hope for improvement.
“Now we can see why we spent billions of dollars in electricity without a substantial increase in megawatts of electricity and the culprits are going scot free; now we can see why our economy has been shrinking and ending up in shambles; now we can see why our youth cannot find jobs; now we can see why our country is on this dangerous trajectory, heading for the rocks; now we can see why this country under this rogue politics has no future at all.
“Now we should see where exactly the problem is and now we should see why we can’t keep quiet.”
