Impeach Deputy Senate President Ekweremadu Now!

In an ideal situation, (which is rarely what we see in Nigeria) the second in command (or 2IC as fondly called in less corporate gatherings and military formations) should preside over matters at the unavailability of the head of command. This means if the President of Nigeria for instance is far away on some kind of assignment or falls sick or, God forbids, he dies, the running of the state will be at the behest of the vice president instantly.


This was what happened when President Yar'Adua died in 2010 and reluctantly Vice President Jonathan took over the mantle of leadership constitutionally. The same can't be said of the 8th National Assembly whose shambolic act of disloyalty and anti-party practices has left them with a leadership brouhaha easily described "Damaged Goods Leadership".

Since inception of this party called Change at the center of Nigerian governance especially in the NASS, the only one thing that has changed is the nomenclature of the man wielding the gavel; not the ideology or personality. Bukola Saraki remains a true PDP man at heart whose interest is well expressed through his mien, disposition and actions. He would go to and through whatever length to achieve his ambition and retain it, ask Saraki senior.

Professor Akin Oyebode, a professor of international law and jurisprudence candidly captures the man who now heads the Senate as thus, "He lacks the requisite propriety to preside over the senate... His antecedents are not endearing, his role with Societe Generale and then his governance in Kwara State, track record has raised a lot of questions. I am worried (as many Nigerians are too) that a man with such questionable character (is) presiding over an important arm of government, especially the National Assembly".

The latter part of the legal luminary's description is the bane of this write up. Saraki Bukola, has many political 'frenemies', he knows that without a doubt. We all too can smell it thousands of kilometers away from Abuja and it is stenchful. The truth of the matter is, he himself is the author and finisher of his predicament. He created these 'frenemies' in monstrous capitulary and his behemoth ambition has made them unrelenting in their vengeful industry and all they want is his name down the drain of political irrelevance. Apart from courting trouble, he has also giving them the instrument to nail him.

But that is not so much a big deal. Because if a man commits a crime, or as little as seen to be an accomplice to a crime, he should pay the price. The grouse and my own pain is why should Bukola Saraki drag the whole country south along with him into the mud. As a sitting Senate Chief, his ordeal with the Code of Conduct Bureau should be something that will or would have spurred him to, at least, step aside till the investigation and probing of his 'alleged' misdemeanor is cleared. Alas, there lies the conundrum!

In a Senate with 49 PDP senators, now 47 (2 PDP senators elections have recently been quashed by the court) and APC with 60 senators, it is not heard anywhere, either politically or constitutionally that the party with the minority number of sitting senators would appoint a senator to preside over the house at the absence of the leader. Except where there is a joint type of governance, usually found in parliamentary systems in the UK or Austrialia; where the leading party fails to win seats convincingly to form a government and the need to parley with another becomes inevitable as was the case of David Cameron's first term election in 2010 when his Conservative Party had to parley with the Liberal Democrats to form a British government. Or regrettably, war torn countries like Sudan, Uganda and co seeking the soul of their motherland for pecuniary reasons.

The Nigerian law is silent on the matter too (of whether a minority party member can ascend at the absence of the leader) as it just simply states in Chapter 5, Section 50, Sub-Section 1a; "There shall be- (a) a President and a Deputy President of the Senate who shall be elected by members of that house from among themselves". This is so elusive and as such a document with resplendent errors. If the laws that should clearly state who does what and who takes responsibilities for what is elusive at best, it leaves itself and the public with different interpretations, manipulations and legal inconveniences.

So for instance, the APC could not legally or politically fight the enthronement of Senator Ike Ekweremadu as Deputy President despite the fact that he emerged from a party with lesser numbers of his likes. To avoid rocking the boat of a new party in power and the resultant nucleic effects if all caution is thrown to the wind, the party bitterly swept under the rug all grievances. The wolves in sheep clothing's amongst the APC, along with Dino Melaye and Bukola Saraki had aligned with their enemies and won a battle largely due to the amateurish initial tendencies of Chief Oyegun, Bisi Akande and Bola Tinubu in National Assembly matters rather than the dramatis personae's political suavities or tactics. Yet the war lingers on.

Tinubu will fight to his last blood to make sure that Bukola Saraki is dethroned while he is still alive and all his political mercenaries disbanded. No other person is solely behind his CCB trial and his wife's EFCC invitation but the Jagaban himself. He would go to any length to disgrace out of office the gentle speaking Senate President and his cronies. Now that he has to go visit the CCB trial regularly, the business of the Senate is on stand still which is absolutely unacceptable. The office of the Senate President is a prestigious office, and should be independent because it is the number one legislative office in the land which should have some clout of respect, royalty and regale.

With Saraki's insistence to hold on to the office while he is being tried by a competent court baffles me. The least he could do was to step aside till he is cleared (but that again is what leaders in Africa don't do). The worst part of it is that the senate had to suspend its primary responsibility, postpone all duties including the ministerial screening just because its leader wants to go and sit in a box called "Accused Box". This begs for some sanity. The question is; wouldn't it be better if he had left his deputy to handle proceedings whilst he is away? David Mark sometimes travel out of the country during his reign and this same Ekweremadu took proceedings on the revered seat. That again, in itself raises another question. Who is his deputy? A man now from a rival party! A man whose party just 6 months ago vowed to perpetuate the PDP in power for 60 years despite ineptitude, corruption and mismanagement.

The time is now! The Senate needs to redeem itself. Impeach the Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu so that even if Bukola Saraki is off on trial, the senate can hold proceedings hitch free with a deputy from the ruling party. That sounds common sense to me. There is no point having a Deputy Senate President that is as useless as an impotent man's private part. He sits there yet he is not there. He can't preside over the house in the absence of the President. So why exactly is he the Deputy Senate President? It is a minus for the APC as much as it is for the PDP and the Nigerian people because every second spent without legislative duties being carried out as paid for by Nigerian tax money payers, that is a waste with gigantic negative proportion.

Now the President can't appoint his ministers because the screening process is taking forever. Despite all the mouthings by the Senate leadership that the screening would be exceptional, Nigerians are disappointed by the shamble called 'grilling' screening carried out on National TV and dailies. It looks same of the same and nothing special. That of course is said with exceptions to few brilliant nominees that graced the hollowed chamber and blew us all away with their eloquence, style and knowledge.

Once again, I beg! Ike Ekweremadu must go so that a more constitutionally viable and active deputy senate president can be appointed who can take over at the absence of this embattled Senate President.