Dogara absent as APC lawmakers perfect plans to impeach Saraki

Speaker of the House of Representatives Yakubu Dogara was conspicuously absent yesterday at the meeting of the National Assembly caucus of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) with the leadership of the party, where plans on how to impeach Senate President Bukola Saraki was perfected. The meeting had in attendance all the Senators and House of Representatives members loyal to the APC but conspicuously missing was the Speaker, Yakubu Dogara, who has been reportedly planning to dump the ruling party. While addressing the lawmakers before they entered into a closed door meeting, APC National Chairman, Comrade Adams Oshiomohle, insisted that the Senate President Saraki, who is now in a minority party cannot continue to preside over the majority, the APC members. According to him, Saraki’s move to approach the court to stop his impeachment will be an exercise in futility because it is the senate that would determine who would lead them. Oshiomhole said: “In all of these, one thing is clear, the Senate president cannot change the real narrative in the Senate. The minority can have their say, and the majority will have their way at the Senate. “If they have only 49, and the APC have 56, they will tell us anywhere in the world, where the minority will produce the leaders of the House. We cannot be subjected to a minority rule in Nigeria. Whether Senator Saraki likes it or not he can only take the part of honour by allowing the APC to take its rightful lead of the Senate. If not he would be impeached lawfully and democratically. “As the governing party, we are committed to leading with example. In everything we do we ensure it is in the provisions of the law, including the impeachment of Senator Saraki. “We have very important issues which requires the NASS to deliberate on before the presiding officers hurriedly adjourned the Assembly. “The issue of obtaining foreign loans, without which the government cannot perform, the virement and the President’s request for the approval of N242bn for INEC. You must act to actualize these, so that the democracy would not shut down as expected by Saraki. These issues require your serious attention to ensure that government gets the required assistance to provide the dividends of democracy to Nigerians,” he stated. Oshiomhole also assured the APC lawmakers that the party will reward the loyal members. Also speaking, the Senate Majority Leader, Ahmed Lawan, insisted that the National Assembly must be reconvened before next week Salah holiday. “We are insisting that the National Assembly must be reconvened quickly, so that we settle the issues of INEC budget, foreign loans and 2018 budget virement. To do otherwise means sabotaged. If we fail to pass the budget, it will serve the PDP very well, but it could spark a serious constitutional crisis. The country would be shut down. “I am sure this a season of regrets because those who have left APC are full of regrets. They are not finding it easy with their new parties.