Former Senate President, Bukola Saraki has responded to the comments made by the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio.
Saraki stated on Thursday that former President Muhammadu Buhari intentionally withheld funds for constituency projects during the eighth senate as a form of punishment for scrutinizing executive loan requests.
Saraki’s response came after Senate President Godswill Akpabio remarked that he was not part of the Senate under Saraki and mentioned that only 40 percent of constituency projects were funded during that time.
While expressing surprise that Akpabio should have known better, Saraki reminded him that he was actually part of the Senate under him (Saraki) then as he (Akpabio) served as the Senate Minority Leader for three years contrary to his earlier claim of not being part of the eighth Senate.
In a statement conveyed by his media aide, Yusuph Olaniyonu, Saraki rebutted Akpabio’s assertion, highlighting the deliberate actions of the Buhari administration to withhold funds as a punitive measure for the eighth National Assembly’s oversight role.
Olaniyonu’s statement conveyed Saraki’s perspective: “For clarification, the Saraki Media Office will want members of the public to note that then President Muhammadu Buhari deliberately refused to approve funds for the constituency projects of members of the eighth National Assembly, obviously to punish the members for questioning some of the loan requests presented by the executive before the legislature.”
He further emphasized that the Buhari government’s reaction to legislative scrutiny was hostile, aiming to hinder the legislature’s performance, with the withholding of constituency project funds being one of the retaliatory measures.
Saraki’s office highlighted Akpabio’s role as Senate minority leader during the eighth Senate, suggesting that he should have been aware of the circumstances. The statement also noted his recent experience as Senate President, indicating that it should have provided him with more insight into the matter.
