For
describing the National Assembly as being peopled by a gang of unarmed robbers,
the House of Representatives has lashed out at ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo,
calling him the grandfather of corruption.
The
Reps described Obasanjo as the most corrupt Nigerian that ever held a public
office, adding that he, however, saw himself as the only clean human being.
Specifically,
the House called Obasanjo the “grandfather of corruption” in Nigeria.
It
added that a reason Obasanjo would never like the members of the National
Assembly was the fact that they foiled his third term ambition in 2007 after
taking his money and displaying it publicly to put him to shame.
The
House accused Obasanjo of churning out outright lies and mischievous innuendos
against the National Assembly.
On
Wednesday, Obasanjo had attacked the legislature on several fronts, including
their salaries/allowances and the alleged diversion of constituency projects.
He
had stated, “Once you are a member, you are co-opted and your mouth is stuffed
with rottenness and corruption that you cannot opt out as you go home with not
less than N15million in a month for a senator and N10m a month for a member of
the House of Representatives. The National Assembly is a den of corruption by a
gang of unarmed robbers.
“If
the judiciary is being cleaned, what of the National Assembly, which stinks
much worse than the judiciary? Budget padding must not go unpunished.
“It
is a reality, which is a regular and systemic practice. Nobody should pull the
wool over the eyes of Nigerians. Ganging up to intimidate and threaten the life
of a whistle-blower is deplorable and undemocratic.’’
But,
speaking through its Chairman, Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Mr.
Abdulrazak Namdas, the House said Obasanjo first introduced corruption to the
legislature in 1999 when he felt he must bribe legislators to have his way on
every issue.
On
corruption, Namdas noted, “Undoubtedly, former President Obasanjo is
understandably angry with the National Assembly as an institution, having
foiled his ambition for a third term in office even after trying to corrupt the
members with a bribe of at least N50m each.
“Lest
we forget, the person who introduced corruption to the National Assembly is
Chief Olusegun Obasanjo. He birthed the 4th Republic National Assembly with corrupt
practices from day one; indeed the first day of the Republic.
“He
bribed the PDP, ANPP and AD legislators on their inauguration in 1999 to vote
against the majority candidate of the PDP, (the late) Dr. Chuba Okadigbo. That
was how Senator Evan Enwerem became the Senate President.
“Have
we forgotten the sacks of money displayed on the floor of the House of
Representatives, being bribe money paid by Chief Olusegun Obasanjo to some
honourable members to impeach the Rt. Hon. Speaker, Ghali N’abba?
“Have
we forgotten that Chief Olusegun Obasanjo used his position as President to
extort businessmen and contractors to build his presidential library?
“The
list of his corrupt acts while in office is endless. Unquestionably, he is the
greatest corrupt person ever to hold office in Nigeria. He remains the
grandfather of corruption in Nigeria and lacks the moral authority to discuss
corruption or abuse of office in Nigeria as he remains the most corrupt
Nigerian on record.”
On
the allegation of budget padding and abuse of constituency projects, Namdas
said the former President, like other Nigerians, should appreciate the
responsibilities of the legislature, which he claimed needed additional
funding.
He
explained, “He claimed that the National Assembly’s budget is very high, when
by all standards, the National Assembly is grossly underfunded and is hampered
from effectively and legitimately carrying out its constitutionally-assigned
functions.”
The
House also observed that Obasanjo had started attacking President Muhammadu
Buhari, saying that he was on a familiar path of discrediting any government
that would not do his bidding.
“It
is unfortunate that he has started his very familiar method of bringing down
governments. He did it to Alhaji Shehu Shagari, he did it to Gen. Muhammadu
Buhari, he did the same to Gen. (Ibrahim) Babangida; and he attempted to bring
down (the late) Gen. Sani Abacha before he imprisoned him for treason.
“He
made frantic efforts to derail the government of (the late) President Musa
Ya’Ardua when he couldn’t use him. He supported President Goodluck Jonathan,
but when he refused to take his dictation, he turned against him.
“He
supported President Buhari, but since he has sensed that Nigeria is having
economic difficulties under him, he has pounced to derail his government.”
Calling
the former President a “blackmailer”, the House noted that all the issues he
raised against Buhari publicly could have been discussed privately with the
President since he had unfettered access to Buhari.
The
Senate on Thursday kept mum on Obasanjo’s recent verbal attack on the National
Assembly.
Several
leaders and members of the upper legislative house declined to reply the
ex-President.
The
Majority Leader, Senator Ali Ndume, who described Obasanjo as a father, said
the ex-president would not be engaged in a media war.
He
said, “I don’t want to take issue with my father. You cannot take issue with
your father on the pages of newspapers.”
Source:Punch
Tags
Politics