—Vow to shut down government
By Ezrel Tabiowo
Abuja
In what may be considered an unexpected development, Senators belonging to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) yesterda y rose against President Goodluck Jonathan when they vowed to frustrate legislative proceedings on the Medium Term Expenditure Framework document, one that the lawmakers said would eventually lead to government being shut down.
The Senators, who expressed anger and frustration at the actions of the ruling party for allegedly handing over party structures in the state to governors, also disclosed that they would align their support to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Alhaji Aminu Tambuwal, who recently dumped the PDP for the All Progressives Congress (APC).
One of the lawmakers, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said: “We are going to show solidarity with the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Alhaji Aminu Waziri Tambuwal. We will not sit again. There will be no consideration of the MTEF (Medium Term Expenditure Framework) and there will be no budget.
“We decided to adjourn and do no business and the APC Senators are in solidarity with us. President Goodluck Jonathan has lost the Senate, he has left the PDP structures in the hands of the governors; let the governors also do our job. We are going to shut the government.”
Lamenting the lack of payment of allowances over a period of three months before the recently held ward congresses, the Senators claimed the action was a planned move by the executive to frustrate them by starving them of funds during the congress.
“Under this arrangement, if left unchallenged, none of the senators would come back in 2015. We are planning to boycott legislative businesses until further notice.”
Senate Leader, Victor Ndoma-Egba, had during plenary yesterday, moved a motion suspending the business of the day immediately after the Deputy President of the Senate, Ike Ekweremadu, who presided over plenary, read a letter from President Jonathan for the nomination of Okwu Joseph Nnanna for confirmation as the Deputy Governor, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
Ndoma-Egba said the adjournment was to allow PDP members to attend an emergency caucus meeting where matters arising from the recent PDP ward congresses leading to many of them losing out in their bid to come back would be raised.
