EXCLUSIVE: President Bola Tinubu Still Has Confidence In Akpabio’s Senate Leadership, Not Contemplating Changing Him – Report
By Dailytab24
Following the disgrace of the administration orchestrated by Ningi, a PDP Senator, the Senate led by Senator Godswill Akpabio faces a tough time, just less than one year in the office. The Senate President could not help but listen to Senator Ningi make mess of President Tinubu’s administration with a grave accusation of budget padding in the tune of 3.7 trillion Naira.
How It Started:
Senator Ningi invited BBC Hausa and gave an interview where he accused the Senate led by Godswill Akpabio of budget padding. He narrated that the budget that was assessed, debated and approved by the Senate was not the same budget that was submitted to the presidency. He submitted that the budget the Red Chamber debated and approved was in the tune of 25 trillion Naira while the one the presidency is working with is 28.7 trillion Naira, which mysteriously added 3.7 trillion Naira.
Senator Ningi after the interview followed up the claims he made on the floor of the Red Chamber with documents he said contains the facts and figures of his claims. He was given a fair hearing on the floor of the Senate; which he audaciously used to repeat the claim made on media. He was shot down by his colleagues in the Senate while few backed him.
The Senate debated on the matter and accused Senator Ningi of disgracing the Senate. His claims were later dismissed by other Senators that dressed him down. The Senate after submissions concluded that no budget was padded and that the actions of Senator Ningi were a deliberate attack on the Senate leadership. He was later suspended for three months with immediate effect.
Upon his exit from the floor of the Red Chamber, Senator Ningi resigned as the chairman of Northern Senators Forum. His resignation as reported by Dailytab24 was in protest of betrayal by his follow northern Senators who didn’t support him and voted for his suspension in the Red Chamber.
President Tinubu’s Meeting With Senate Leadership:
Immediately after the chaos on the Senate floor, President Bola Amed Tinubu called in the Senate leadership to discuss the incident. As reported by Dailytab24, the President was dissatisfied with Akpabio’s handling of Ningi’s issue as he blamed him for not being proactive. The President noted as exclusively reported by Dailytab24 that he doesn’t like the incident and would not want to see such incidents as it affects his administration. Ways to handle the incident was discussed internally.
President Tinubu was angry that the matter could turn into a scandal for his administration. On the other hand, Senator Godswill Akpabio assured the President that he would work harder to ensure that future incident of that nature didn’t happen again, while pointing to the President that Ningi suspension was a pointer that he still has total control of the Senate.
What Is Happening Now:
Saharareporters exclusively disclosed that Northern Governors and top political figures are mounting pressure on the President to sack Akpabio as the Senate President. The move is gathering momentum on the top.
However, Dailytab24 can reliably confirm that President Tinubu still has confidence in Akpabio’s leadership for now. According to the sources that spoke to Dailytab24, the President sees the incident on the Senate floor as opposition orchestrated attack against his government. He trusts Akpabio and has confidence in his leadership. He noted that this particular incident will not trigger his sacking.
“The President is an old politician; he is not new in the business of politics, so he understands every step being taken by politicians and his opposition. He sees it from the perspective of wanting to cause commotion internally for APC. He regrets the bitter politics of blackmail orchestrated by the PDP, and he would not succumb to removing Senator Akpabio. As a matter of fact, his confidence in Akpabio just doubled. Even if Akpabio will be sacked in the future, it won’t be because of Senator Ningi’s dart” a source close to the presidency said.
The sources further disclosed that the President is aware of the northern opposition to the leadership of Akpabio since from the start and that the same train is moving.
“The President resisted the northern pressure to drop Senator Godswill Akpabio during the Senate leadership election. There is no pressure that can push the President to drop him now, Akpabio is a worthy comrade of the President. The confidence in Akpabio is renewed and the attacks against him are clearly the work of the opposition, and the President will not fall for the opposition”
