For national interest, we won't remove Saraki- APC senators

Senate President, Bukola Saraki, should now heave a sigh of relief, as senators representing All Progressives Congress (APC), have dropped plans to remove him as president of the Senate.

Since Mr Saraki’s defection to the PDP,
the APC leadership and some of its senators repeatedly called on him to resign as Senate President or be removed from office. APC Chairman, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, was particularly vociferous in his threat to ensure Mr Saraki is removed if he does not resign.

However, in a twist of tales, after a meeting President Muhammadu Buhari at the State House on Friday, Senate Leader, Ahmed Lawan (APC, Yobe), said that all the senators across party lines have agreed to work together "in national interest".

“We definitely have to bury our hatchets for us to work for Nigeria and Nigerians. Perhaps that might have informed the disappointment of many people that there will be crisis in the National Assembly,” Mr Lawan told State House journalists.

The senator then suggested the he and his APC colleagues had put national interest above party interest by abandoning the plot to remove Mr Saraki.

“I don’t know what informed your view to anticipate crisis but let me tell you that National Assembly will continue to remain focus on national issues, we must be patriotic, nationalistic. We must put national interest above individual, parochial or partisan interest.

“Let me also say that disagreements are usual. In fact, there are very practical components of any parliament, when you have two to three parties or even within parties, you will have views that may differ. It is traditional, it is usual for us to disagree. Maybe these disagreements may crop up and some other issues. But for now, our focus is on national interest,” he said.

When specifically asked if he and his APC colleagues had dropped the plan to remove Mr Saraki, the Senate Leader simply said national interest overrides any other interest for now.

“The National Assembly is a Nigerian parliament and therefore the best thing to do is to ensure that Nigerians gets a good deal and for now the good deal is for Nigeria to have all those pending request of Mr President approved by the National Assembly.

“I think the national interest for now overrides any other interest. Our intention is to ensure that Mr President doesn’t lack from inactivity of the National Assembly. That whatever he requests, the fundamental aspects especially will be attended to. This is our determination both as APC senators. In fact as Senate and National Assembly.”