Defeated PDP candidate and former Chairman of the EFCC, Nuhu Ribadu and the outgoing Senate President, David Mark, on Monday disagreed on the need for National Assembly to cut its budget in line with the current economic realities in the country.
While daring Mark and others, Ribadu said:
"If Nigerians do not know how much is earmarked for the National Assembly or how much money a senator earns, they will not support you. We must understand the pulse or the mood of the nation.
“The first step, therefore, is to open up the National Assembly by ensuring transparency. Public office is what it is; public. Also, at this critical time of austerity, be champions by slashing your own budget...
“My very good friend, Ben Bruce (a senator-elect) has already spoken about this. There are many others already saying it. For you to excel, you must put in extra effort than your colleagues in other parties.”
Ribadu had stirred up a hornet’s nest by calling on the lawmakers-elect to make their monthly salaries and other secret allowances public and also cut their budgets. His call immediately attracted side talks by the participants which included governors and the leadership of the PDP.
Obviously aware that his advice was not being welcomed by most of the PDP men, Ribadu reminded them that they would be going to the National Assembly as the minority, with the APC in majority.
Ribadu pointed out that patriotism and quality contributions by PDP members in the National Assembly would go a long way in reinventing and preparing the party for a successful comeback in future polls.
He stressed that the PDP lawmakers-elect must not only be champions of probity and discipline, they must wage war against corruption and ensure strict compliance with appropriation as well as due process.
But Mark, who showed his dissatisfaction with Ribadu’s charge, wondered why “every time, people will talk about National Assembly budget.”
Explaining that the budget of the Assembly had always been in public domain, the outgoing President of the Senate argued that Senators and House of Reps members had always made sacrifices.
“Every time, people will talk about National Assembly budget; for Heaven’s sake, unless you would say you have never seen the national budget, it is a public document. The National Assembly budget is there with every other budget,” he stated in an angry tone.
Mark,who added that the National Assembly members "were the first to make a cut in 2015 budget," claimed that "people should appreciate what we are doing and not to come and give an impression that our budget is bloated while every other person had made a cut.”
He continued, “We are trying our best more than any ministry today. I can put my hand on my chest without fear of contradiction at all and say we made a lot of sacrifices in our budgeting system.
“Our budget is open; what we earn as National Assembly members is open. If anybody wants to receive his salary and donate it, he is free to do so. He does not need to consult us. I think we should not play politics with what is a very serious issue. Our budget is in the open and everybody can see it.”
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