Ike Ekweremadu, deputy senate
president, says one way to earn a living in Abuja, the country’s capital city,
is to organise protests.
Ekweremadu said this on the floor
of the senate while contributing to a debate on a motion sponsored by Barnabas
Gamade, senator representing Benue north-east.
Gemade was reacting to a protest
at the entrance of the national assembly against constituency projects.
He argued that the idea of
constituency projects is a way the presence of legislators could be felt by
those they represent.
However, the deputy senate
president said the protest was sponsored by government officials who are
opposed to the national assembly.
“Let me recognize that we have
problems and challenges in Nigeria. But I would limit myself to the issue of
unemployment and poverty. Rising from this, some people have found a way of
surviving. One way of surviving in Abuja is to organise protest. There are
people are consider as protest contractors,” Ekweremadu said.
“What is happening is that some
people go to government officials or governors who they believe are opposed to
the national assembly. They gather protesters and give them N1500 each. Some
they pay them only N500 as in the case of today to come protest in the front of
national assembly.
“So each time I see them, I feel
sorry for this country that some people are doing things they do not believe
in. The issue of protesting today against constituency projects is to say the
least very embarrassing. I come from a constituency in this country where we
indeed constituency projects is working and I challenge anybody who says it’s
not working to come with any contradiction of what I am saying that
constituency projects in my senatorial district has been implemented as
allocations were released. There is no abuse whatsoever. I challenge anyone who
feels it has been abused to come up with evidence of such.”
He said anyone person opposed to
these projects is an enemy of the people.
“We should focus and ensure that
in any budget that this is provided for because this is the only way we touch
the lives of people we represent in this country,” the deputy senate president
said.
“No amount of black mail or
intimidation should stop the implementation of constituency projects, I admit
like every other thing in life, it is being abused in some places and by some
people but that is not to suggest that the benefits outnumbers some of the
issues we have raised. If anybody has any particular evidence of the abuse of
constituency projects, the senate and indeed the national assembly is prepared
to deal with it.
“But to say that constituency
projects should be discontinued, I believe that is the height of insensitivity
to the part of our people. So whoever is collecting money to come to the
national assembly to come and oppose the issue of constituency projects that is
not going to happen so I want to advise my constituents.”
On June 20, President Muhammadu
Buhari complained about the insertions of over 4,000 projects to the 2018
budget by the national assembly when he signed the appropriations bill.
No comments
Post a Comment
Kindly drop a comment below.
(Comments are moderated. Clean comments will be approved immediately)
Advert Enquires - Reach out to us at NigerianEye@gmail.com