Buhari, NASS and the Night of Long Knives
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The days of diplomacy and niceties between the National Assembly and the Presidency of Muhammadu Buhari may have gone for good. Or bad, depending on which side of the unfolding drama you stand. But wherever side of the fence anyone belongs is of no consequence to the fact that governance is now fully run aground to the detriment of hapless and helpless citizens of Nigeria who invested their hopes and aspirations in the ‘ change’ chants of the current administration in 2015.
The relationship between both arms of government appears to have broken down irretrievably. That much could be gleaned from the tone of the 12- point resolutions reached by a joint executive session of the federal legislature on Tuesday. Irritated by the irascible insolence of the Inspector General of Police, Mr. Ibrahim Idris, who has edged the name, personality and good offices of the President of the Senate, Bukola Saraki, into disrepute by associating him with the dastardly Offa robbery incident, the National Assembly steadied itself for a fight to finish with the President. By threatening to invoke constitutional provisions to get the President to act in compliance with the resolutions of the executive session, the Senate and House of Representatives have collectively passed the message that the cracks in the romance have finally become a chasm too wide to close. “The national assembly will not hesitate to invoke its constitutional power if nothing is done address the bulk of resolutions passed today,” the legislators concluded after reeling a list of demands Mr. Buhari must accede to in order to avoid the inevitable.
Unfortunately, the message appeared lost on a President that has though while seeming to respect the independence of the legislature as a separate arm of government, is not keen on observing the sanctity and respect it deserves as a partner in progress.
It is possible that President Buhari may himself be given to a decorous relationship with the National Assembly but the actions and/ or inactions of his appointees actuate a completely different tendency. As the lawmakers put it, Buhari “must be held accountable for the actions of his appointees and must be ready to sanction any act which will ridicule the country and our country’s democracy and that there must be strict adherence to the rule of law and protection of all citizen.”
All of the rough rides both arms of the government have been through are mainly as a result of the actions or decisions of heady actors in the executive arm of government. From the case of Hameed Ali, the Comptroller General of the Customs Service, who had a brush with the Senate over refusal to wear uniform; to the fiery exchange with the Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, over budget padding; to name- calling over salaries and allowances between the chairman of Buhari’s anti- corruption committee, Prof. Itse Sagay, and the Senate; it has been a big basket of sour grapes. And in almost of these conflicts, the National Assembly has been presented and perceived by much of the mob as the bad guy in pursuit of the frivolous, pecuniary, and prebendal. This perception unfortunately, is a combination of a carry- over of negative public profile from years of scandals and missteps by the National Assembly since the Fourth Republic; and a lack of proper understanding and adequate appre- ciation of the roles and functions of the legislature in a presidential democracy as currently practiced in Nigeria. Because of this, the legislature automatically is left with the shorter end of the stick in its disagreements or battles with the executive arm of government, no matter how wrong- footed the latter is.
This is the understanding that emboldens the grandstanding of the Nigeria Police with the Senate and its president, Sen. Bukola Saraki. I have written about this previously in this column and still hold the view that a legislature that has the overwhelming support of the citizens it represents will not be allowed to take the dose of disrespect and disdain the police under Mr. Idris is currently serving it. But even in this discomforting circumstance, the Senate cannot be allowed to be dragged on the mud the way and manner the police is going about it. Without prejudice to its powers to investigate and prosecute crimes and other offences, the police has gone on overdrive to get Saraki implicated in the Offa bloody robbery attack which left scores dead and properties worth billions of naira destroyed or looted. In deliberately neglecting to separate political thuggery from armed robbery and insisting on making the Senate President answer questions on his alleged association with robbery suspects is a blow below the belt for not just Saraki but the entire institution of the Senate. The fact that the same police boss has bluntly declined legislative summons serially and consecutively makes matters even worse. Worst of all is when the Senate in a desperate attempt to insulate the President from the recalcitrance of his appointee reported the IG of police to Buhari at a meeting in the villa.
The resort to target the President directly therefore must be understood within this context. And in an attempt to make the matter sit well in the court of public opinion, the demands by the National Assembly touched on other issues of direct concern to the citizenry, including the raging killings and the high level of unemployment and hardship in the country. But it appears Buhari is unfazed as the President’s camp is seemingly going all out against both perceived and real enemies in the legislature. First of all, the Buhari Support Group in the National Assembly in a swift counter, sought to rubbish the resolutions of the joint session by labeling it a PDP affair. Media reports during the week suggested that the plan is to actually go frontal against the leadership of Saraki and Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara. If this eventually plays out, then the nation must be ready for a series night of long knives where casualties could cut both ways. But unfortunately, the ultimate losers would be Nigeria and Nigerians who just want peace to continue to lead their already burdened lives, with or without the noisome nuisance served by politicians.