Saraki: Senate under My Leadership was People’s Parliament
The President of the eighth Senate, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, who is also the board chairman of the Africa Political Institute, yesterday publicly spoke glowingly of his tenure as the Senate president, stating that his life in the Senate was devoted to making the parliament relevant to all Nigerians.
He said: “My life in the eighth Senate was devoted to making the parliament relevant to Nigerians of every social class and in every field of endeavour. I worked for us to have a ‘People’s Parliament’, and that was what we had.
“I know it was the best way to get the people to understand, support and get involved in the work of the parliament. I have the belief that we will be securing the future of our democracy if this is achieved. The parliament remains the critical barometer to measuring the success and growth of democracy.”
Speaking yesterday on the International Day of Parliamentarianism, which was organised by the Nigerian Youth Parliament, Saraki said: “In 2018, I visited Russia to attend the 137th Session of the Inter-Parliamentary Union, and decided to use the occasion to meet Nigerian students there. There and then, I saw myself confronted with the case of stranded students on federal government scholarship whose tuition fees and allowances had not been paid for many years by the government. On my return, we invited all relevant Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) and raised the issue. And they promised to resolve the issue. That is how significant a parliament should be to the people.”
Continuing, the former Senate president said: “The National Assembly under my leadership was the first to implement the provision of the law on Basic Healthcare Provision Fund when we included in the 2018 budget one percent of the Consolidated Revenue Fund to be devoted to primary health care. It was part of our plan to ‘Make Nigeria Stronger’ by helping to maintain a healthy citizenry. The then Minister of Health, Prof. Isaac Adewole, described that move as a ‘Game Changer’. From Bill Gates to Bono, the musician, to the Director-General of World Health Organisation (WHO), Dr. Tedros, it was commendation galore for the eighth Assembly.”