10th National Assembly has failed – Salihu Lukman

A former National Vice Chairman (North-West) of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Salihu Mohammed Lukman, says the 10th National Assembly led by Senate President Godswill Akpabio and Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Tajuddeen Abbas has failed Nigerians.

Lukman, in a statement on Tuesday, said the 10th Assembly has failed to compel the executive arm to do things right in the interest of Nigerians.

Lukman, a former member of the APC National Working Committee (NWC), said, “Partly because of the faint or almost complete absence of courageous voices in the National Assembly, the President and the members of the executive body of government are practically getting away with virtually every wrong decision that are injurious to the wellbeing of Nigerian citizens.

“A good example is the impulsive declaration of President Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu to end petroleum subsidy without any clear plan, followed by another impulsive decision to float the Naira exchange rate against other international currencies with hardly any plan.

“How did we get to this abysmally low level of legislative practice whereby it can almost be said that in Nigeria, democracy equates darkness? Without going into details, combinations of many factors, which have taken place over the last 25 years are responsible.

“Some of the factors include the reality whereby systematically the leadership of both chambers of the National Assembly have been downgraded to the status of appointees of the President.

“That was largely made possible by the fact that the party machinery or organs, which are supposed to serve as the platforms for negotiations have been weakened and also subordinated to the President.”

However, response from the Senate Spokesman, Senator Adaramodu (APC, Ekiti South) is being awaited.