“We Don’t Have Power To Fight Corruption”, Says Senate President, Gives Shocking Reason
- Senate President Ahmad Lawan has corrected the notion that the national assembly has the power to sanction corrupt government officials
- During a public lecture in Abuja recently, he revealed that the parliament does not have the constitutional right as such to take such actions
- He, however, disclosed that the national assembly has the constitutional backing to expose corruption
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FCT, Abuja - Ahmad Lawan, the senate president of Nigeria has revealed that the national assembly is not within the jurisdiction to fight corruption.
He stated that the provision of the 1999 constitution does not give the national assembly such powers to punish corrupt officials in the civil service.
Source: UGC
Lawan gave this vital revelation at the 6th convocation ceremony of the National Institute for Legislative and Democratic Studies-University of Benin (NILDS-UNIBEN) held at the National Assembly, Abuja.
As reported by Sahara Reporters, Lawan said the national assembly does have the obligation to unearth corruption as provided in the amended version of the 1999 constitution stipulated in section 88.
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Lawan noted that despite the provision that enables the parliament to expose corruption, they still do not have the power to sanction a corrupt government official.
He said:
“I think the reality is that the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (1999 as amended) as it is today has left the legislature constrained because, in Section 88, it talks of the legislature exposing corruption, wastes, and embezzlement and stops there."
"We can sanction a warrant of arrest, but we can't force it" - Lawan
He also revealed that the legislature is within the right of the constitution to sanction an arrest for an alleged government official to be brought before the parliament if he/she refuses to honour an invitation.
Surprisingly, he revealed that the discretion of the inspector-general of police who is under the command of the president will be employed in such a situation.
He said:
“The IGP will have the choice if you ask him to send the police to arrest somebody let’s say in the Ministry of Justice; he will really have to weigh the options whether he will create problem for himself or the institution by issuing that warrant."
House of senate seat over 20.5tr 2023 appropriation bill
In another development, the House of Senate has begun deliberations and debate into the 2023 appropriation bill.
A closer look into the bill reveals that it is N750 billion more than the previous bill of 2022.
Some intriguing facts about the 2023 appropriation bill include N11.92 billion earmarked for feeding and foreign trips for the president and his vice.
Source: Legit.ng
