Akpabio’s Rebirth?

The Senate has conscionable resumed sitting aft 1 of its holidays. That is not the quality that should beryllium of involvement to Nigerians, particularly since the legislative body’s relevance to astir radical is becoming doubtful.

What is noteworthy is the duplicity of the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, who, successful his invited code connected the level of the chamber, lamented rising hunger and insecurity successful the state aft earlier scoffing astatine protesters against atrocious governance. We callback that helium had told the protesters past that portion they would beryllium marching successful the streets, helium and his chap predators of nationalist resources would beryllium drinking beverage successful their homes.

Now the person of the National Assembly is abruptly calved again and is raising what is, successful our view, a dubious alarm to the effect that determination was an incremental emergence successful hunger, poorness and insecurity successful the country.

In his opinion, the realities connected crushed regarding banditry, terrorism, soaring nutrient prices and earthy disasters request urgent enactment by the national and authorities governments.

As portion of this lamentation, helium claimed that 33 cardinal Nigerians look acute nutrient and information challenges that telephone for urgent legislative attention. Not to notation the wide of unemployed youths aimlessly roaming the streets.

For effect, Akpabio added, “let america perceive the outcry from the farms and the markets crossed the nation. Hunger cannot beryllium defeated with words. Hunger requires argumentation absorption and diligent execution to decision it.”

Are we to presume that the Senate, which Akpabio leads, is astir to aftermath up from its self-induced slumber? Or perhaps, his remarks are a deserving apology from him for legislative inaction connected matters of nationalist significance?

Otherwise, we would beryllium compelled to inquire Akpabio and others similar him wherever they person been since their inauguration, due to the fact that the pervasive sentiment among discerning Nigerians is that the 10th National Assembly, which helium leads, is connected grounds arsenic the worst since the instauration of the Fourth Republic. Actually, it is considered a section of the Executive arm, lacking successful immoderate grasp of the dictates of checks and balances connected which antiauthoritarian governance relies and thrives.

Akpabio presides implicit a legislature wherever it is speculated that an mean legislator goes location monthly with a wage and allowances of not little than N21 cardinal successful a state wherever determination is inactive an ongoing statement implicit the acceptability of N70,000 arsenic the minimum wage for a idiosyncratic whose woman goes to the aforesaid marketplace arsenic the senator’s wife.

This excludes the corruption-laden constituency projects, sleaze from oversight rip-offs, and different under-the-table deals that indispensable beryllium satisfied for authorities to proceed smoothly.

It is from this position that Nigerians would respect Akpabio’s remarks arsenic self-serving and utterly violative to their sensibilities. Nigerians bash not expect their leaders from immoderate of the arms of authorities — executive, legislative, oregon judicial — to punctual them of their plight, the drudgery they acquisition regular successful their efforts to past successful an situation of uncaring enactment and the lack of governance.

We are, however, enamoured by this rebirth and self-realisation of Akpabio regarding the shortfalls of the ruling people and his determination to embark connected a spiritual expiatory ritual resulting from pangs of conscience.

But we bash not judge that this is genuine. Akapbio is simply a politician, and their chameleonic propensities are legendary.  The federation is astir to participate a caller predetermination cycle. Politicians are adopting their pleasant modes to lure the unsuspecting electorate, who whitethorn beryllium swayed by the remarks of the benignant Akpabio is unleashing connected them, to beryllium led astray to discarded their franchise.

During their holidays, they whitethorn person been confronted by the stark world of legislative ineffectiveness, enactment failures successful their assorted constituencies, and the adjacent volcanic choler of a colonisation that feels betrayed by those they mistakenly placed their anticipation in.

That whitethorn explicate the caller Akpabio that is connected display. We bash not judge that this National Assembly is susceptible of providing immoderate argumentation direction, fto unsocial execution that tin bring astir the benignant of affirmative effect helium is envisaging wrong the abbreviated clip near betwixt present and the 2027 election, the campaigns of which, by the way, are already successful afloat gear.

We are calling connected Nigerians to spot the remarks by the Senate President arsenic fundamentally a governmental gimmick to hoodwink, again, an electorate that is truthful gullible and credulous.

We bash not privation immoderate politician, of immoderate status, to punctual suffering Nigerians of rising hunger, banditry, terrorism, kidnapping and unemployment due to the fact that they cognize and consciousness it.

What we expect of Nigerians, arsenic a newspaper, is for them to enactment connected their reasoning caps and committedness themselves that they volition ne'er again merchantability their votes oregon m...