Headlines
Withdraw Your Budget Padding Allegation, It’s Careless, Irresponsible – Saraki Tells Tinubu
President of the Senate, Bukola Saraki, has challenged the National Leader of the All Progressives Congress, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, to prove that he has padded the national budgets since 2015.
Former Lagos State governor Tinubu in a statement on Sunday accused Saraki and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, of padding national budgets since they came to power.
“National budgets were delayed and distorted as these actors repeatedly sought to pad budgets with pet projects that would profit them,” Tinubu claimed in the statement.
“Even worse, they cut funds intended to prosper projects that would have benefited the average person. After four years of their antics, halting the progress of government, we should do all we can to prevent a repeat of their malign control of the National Assembly.
“He (Saraki) planted himself at the apex of legislative power. But his actions as Senate President showed a man devoid of compassion for the average Nigerian. All he cared for was power and position.”
But in a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Mr Yusuph Olaniyonu, on Monday, Saraki slammed the allegation as “careless, irresponsible and callous”.
The former Kwara State governor challenged Tinubu to prove the allegation or withdraw it.
The statement said, “In all the three budgets already passed by the National Assembly, we challenge Tinubu to make a specific reference to where Saraki and the leadership of the National Assembly ‘sought to pad with pet projects’ as he alleged.
“Tinubu should be graceful enough to substantiate this allegation. We consider that allegation careless, irresponsible and callous. We, therefore, demand that he withdraw it.”
Olaniyonu described Tinubu’s statement as “another of his now well-expected quarterly vicious attack” on Saraki.
He added, “Since we have taken it for granted that Tinubu’s attack on Saraki every three months will come as expected, we would just have ignored his statement but for the fact that it was filled with untruth, fallacies and misrepresentations. The statement was another effort to sell a concocted narrative about the 8th National Assembly and its leadership.
“To further make the points here clear, we invite Tinubu to look at the records of the time of the submission of the budgets and their passage since 2010 and he will see that, with the exception of the 2013 budget, which was passed on December 20, 2012, all the budgets were passed between March and May of the same fiscal year.
“This should give him a better understanding of the fact that the date the Appropriation Bill is submitted to the parliament and the readiness of the MDAs to defend the proposals submitted as well as a timely agreement on the figures by both chambers of the National Assembly are the main determining factors when the budget is eventually passed. So, Tinubu should see that the facts cannot support his spins and fake narrative.”
Saraki faulted Tinubu’s criticism of the leadership of the 8th National Assembly, insisting he and other leaders of the upper chamber were democratically elected.
The statement said, “It is because they are the choice of their colleagues that they have remained in office for the past 46 months despite the plots hatched by anti-democratic, reactionary and fascist elements pretending to be ‘progressives.”
It added, “In fact, Tinubu should know that if there was any mistake made on June 9, 2015, it was the miscalculation by himself and his cabal in the APC who felt they could decide for the senators-elect and House of Representatives members-elect. When they failed after their grandstanding that they could always get whatever they desired, they resorted to undermining the institution of the legislature and waging a campaign of calumny against the lawmaking body.”
Saraki’s aide also accused Tinubu of attacking his principal due to his belief that the APC chief frustrated his ambition to be President Muhammadu Buhari’s running mate in 2015 as well as his presidential ambition in 2023.
The statement said, “It is obvious his arbitrary and tactless interference in the process of the emergence of the leadership of the 9th National Assembly is already falling through. The frustration from this experience might have been responsible for this needless and baseless outbursts.”
It added, “A situation where Tinubu is dictating to elected legislators and ordering them to either comply with his directives or get out of the party will not augur well for the legislature in the next dispensation. History should have thought him that only leaders that truly enjoy the support of members can help the President and his administration to achieve their objectives.
“It is a good development that the candidates for the various positions are already reaching out to their colleagues and forging alliances. We can see that after he realised that he has misfired, he is trying to retrace his steps.”
Meanwhile, an aspirant to the House Representatives speakership, Mr Mohammed Bago, has urged Tinubu to allow the best aspirant to get the job.
Bago in a statement on Monday by spokesman for the Bago Campaign Organisation, Mr Victor Ogene, said, “Not too long ago, in 2015, when Tinubu tried to foist the same mentee of his as Speaker. In spite of the rational voices of caution by many stakeholders, many have been left wondering if the enforcement effort was at the instance of President Buhari and the party.
“Although a greater portion of the statement centred on his probable scheming for the 2023 presidential election, real or imagined, our concern revolves around the oblique reference to loyalty as the basis for his decision to stand by his adopted (son) as the next Speaker of the House of Representatives.”
The Punch
The National Chairman of All Progressives Congress (APC), Abdullahi Ganduje, has argued that there is nothing wrong if Nigeria evolves into a one-party state, provided it reflects the will of the people.
Speaking to State House correspondents on Friday after a meeting with President Bola Tinubu at the Presidential Villa in Abuja, Ganduje dismissed concerns raised by opposition leaders over the country’s political direction.
He insisted that the growing dominance of the APC is a reflection of public trust in the party’s governance.
“If one-party state is a wish and blessing to Nigeria; One-party state is not by force; it is by negotiation,” Ganduje said.
“If other political parties see the effect of the positive governance of our party and decide to come to our party willingly, I think there is nothing wrong with that.”
Citing China as an example of a successful one-party system, Ganduje stated that the APC is not actively working to eliminate opposition, but that defections and realignments are part of democratic processes.
“Too many political parties spoil governance,” he added.
Ganduje led three senators from the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), reportedly from Kebbi State, to meet with President Tinubu, announcing their intention to join the APC.
According to him, their defection is the result of extensive negotiations among stakeholders in the state and is part of APC’s broader strategy to strengthen its base.
“This is a good development and in consonance with what is happening in Nigeria today. Almost every week in the Senate and House of Representatives, you see members of other political parties decamping to our party,” he said.
Ganduje assured that the APC is prepared to smoothly integrate the new members, maintaining that the party’s strategy to expand both its numbers and the quality of its membership is aligned with democratic principles.
The Senator representing Kogi Central in the National Assembly, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, has distanced herself from a viral TikTok video that surfaced online showing her dancing to “Omo Ologo”, a song in praise of President Bola Tinubu.
In a public disclaimer released via her verified X (formerly Twitter) account, Akpoti-Uduaghan denied owning any TikTok account, warning the public against being misled by parody accounts across various social media platforms.
“I do not own a TikTok account,” she posted.
“Many parody accounts exist in my name on X (Twitter), Instagram, Facebook and TikTok. Some have garnered large followings.”
She clarified that the circulating video was manipulated from an old 2023 clip and repurposed with “mischievous intent” to mislead the public.
“While I hold the President in utmost respect, I’d urge everyone to disregard the mischievous post made using an old 2023 video of mine,” she stated.
The video, sound-tracked by “Omo Ologo”, a praise song performed by Dauda Kahutu Rarara at a recent event attended by Tinubu in Katsina, appeared to depict the senator aligning herself with the president’s camp.
President Bola Tinubu has issued a passionate call for unity, resilience, and renewed patriotism, urging Nigerians to stand firm behind ongoing reforms aimed at rebuilding the country’s economic foundation.
Speaking during a grand reception in Awka, Anambra State, on the occasion of his state visit, President Tinubu acknowledged the current challenges facing the nation but assured the people that the hard choices were necessary for lasting prosperity.
“We continue to plead with Nigerians for their patience and understanding,” Tinubu appealed.
“We call on all patriots and progressives to rise and continue to work hard every day for the greatness of our dear country. We have no other country but Nigeria. We must make it great as the pride of the black race.”
He reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to inclusive development, citing progress made in economic reform, infrastructure investment, and improved public finance management.
“We met near-insolvent public finance… unsustainable multiple subsidies… a chaotic and debilitating forex regime. These monsters have been tackled,” he said.
Highlighting renewed investor confidence and growth in agriculture, manufacturing, and technology, Tinubu said the “Renewed Hope Agenda” was already yielding visible results.
He particularly commended Anambra for leading in innovation and development, referencing the commissioning of the Solution Fun City and Government House Mini-City as signs of progress.
Describing Governor Chukwuma Soludo as “a brilliant man” and “a thinker who knows the way,” Tinubu added: “We are working together for a better Anambra and Nigeria.”
The president also praised Anambra State for fully implementing and even surpassing the new national minimum wage, calling it “a signal of true leadership and compassion for the working class.”
Asserting the federal government’s commitment to equitable development, Tinubu promised increased investment in roads, power, rail, and digital infrastructure across all regions, including the Southeast.
