Yakubu Dogara, speaker of the House of Representatives, says the eight National Assembly is the most
persecuted in Nigeria’s history.
Speaking during the valedictory
session of the lower legislative chamber in Abuja on Thursday, Dogara said the
lawmakers worked in a “toxic” atmosphere”.
He said some of the lawmakers
were victims of harassment and incessant arrests over false accusations.
The speaker, however, said the
outgoing house is among the best in Nigeria’s history, with a “record-breaking”
number of 382 bills passed.
“Ironically, the 8th national
assembly also holds the record as the most persecuted and harassed parliament,
ever in Nigeria’s history,” he said.
“Some of our members bear the
scars of reckless deployment of institutional prerogatives. We witnessed sieges
and invasion by state operatives.
“Some members suffered
witch-hunts, house arrests and false accusations. We are also witnesses to
barrage of uncharitable criticisms and assessments bandied on daily basis in
the media by hired mercenaries who masquerade as analysts. Most of these
analysts are ignorant of the fact that the parliament was not designed to be an
alter of praise for the executive but a co-equal branch to serve as a check on
executive power.”
He also commended his colleagues
for not allowing partisanship “to erode our system of checks and balances.:
Dogara said though the lawmakers
“may not have achieved our legislative agenda hundred percent”, he has no doubt
that they did their best “given the circumstances and the very toxic
environment under which we operated”.
“My fulfillment as a leader in
this assembly stems from the fact that, bolstered by the spirit of patriotism
and nationalism, we were able to sustain the legacies of previous parliaments
by ensuring that this great institution was not compromised or exploited”.
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