Some members of the House of Representatives have faulted their colleagues who took a swipe at the senator representing Zamfara Central on the platform of the All Progressives Congress, APC, for allegedly desecrating the sanctity of the National Assembly.
Senator Marafa had asked his colleagues to remove Senate President Bukola Saraki over the resumption of his trial at the Code of Conduct Tribunal, or risk being recalled by Nigerians.
He also alleged that “fifth columnists” in the Senate were responsible for the 2016 budget debacle, which he pointed out coincided with Supreme Court ruling giving the CCT go ahead with Mr. Saraki’s trial.
The senator was referred to the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions, which laid its report since last week, without Marafa given the opportunity to defend himself after he notified the committee of his inability to honour its first and only invitation.
Reacting to the development, Marafa accused his colleagues in the committee of lying against him and being afraid of him because of their ‘atrocities’.
What was an issue concerning the senators quickly spilled over to the House on Wednesday when eleven members, believed to be loyal to Yakubu Dogara, whose emergence as Speaker followed a course determined by Mr. Saraki, condemned Mr. Marafa, whose statements, they said, cast slur on the sanctity of the legislature.
They also urged the Zamfara senator to allow popular will of his colleagues in the red chamber, who elected the leadership of the Senate, override his personal interest.
“It is indeed regrettable that eight months after the contest for leadership in the Senate ended, Marafa and his group have remained in electioneering mode”, they said.
Mr. Marafa is the spokesperson of Unity Forum, the group that opposed the leadership of Mr. Saraki, preferring Ahmed Lawan instead.
However, on Sunday, 15 members of the House countered their colleagues, asking them to refrain from meddling in the Senate’s internal affairs.
In a statement, they said, “it must be made clear to the legislators who are mostly new members that the two Houses of the National Assembly are Independent and Separate and by getting involved in the internal crisis of the Senate shows them to be busybodies and interlopers who know nothing about the running of a bicameral legislature.
“We advise our colleagues to mind their own business and face the peoples work for which they were elected to do”.
The statement signed by signed John Dyegh, Lawal Gumau, Ahmad Kaita, Agunsoye Rotimi, Ali Madaki, Aminu Malle, Nazir Daura, Muhammed Soba, Ismail Gadaka, Abdulrahman Shuaibu, Sunday Adepoju, Adekunle Akinlade, Ajibola Famurewa, Abdulmahmud Gaiya and Musa Adar, expressed solidarity with Mr. Marafa and concurred that the budget controversy was an agenda for “political negotiation”.
“Since we are all entitled to our opinion, we agree with Senator Marafa that the budget distortions became a political tool in the hands of some legislators and their agenda was to use it for political negotiation”.
They also queried why their colleagues could not reply former President Olusegun Obasanjo after his letter to the National Assembly.
“We wonder where these legislators were when former President made his own public opinion and tirade recently.
“It is even more shocking that they were so quick to do the bidding of whoever their paymaster is that they moved even faster than the senate ethics committee set up to investigate the matter”, they said.
