Enyinnaya Abaribe, the senator for the Abia South senatorial constituency, has revealed that the National Assembly’s approval of executive requests does not imply that all parliamentarians concur with the ruling.
During an appearance on Channels Television on Monday, Abaribe made this claim while answering questions.
He claimed that because of what he called “state capture,” the National Assembly, led by Senate President Godswill Akpabio, is unable to properly challenge President Bola Tinubu’s administration.
The senator was questioned about why the same administration is being criticized by senators who supported important government policies, budgets, and nominations.
In response, he said that the larger issue is what he called “state capture,” in which the executive has subjugated the legislature and other branches of government.
He insisted that some politicians still oppose policies and acts they think are unacceptable in spite of the current circumstances.
“I am a senator of the Federal Republic,” declared Abaribe. When you offer your document to me as the representative of my constituency, I tell you that I disagree with it, but some of my colleagues say they do. What are you asking me to do? The National Assembly made that decision. It does not imply that I concur.
“As I stated in front of you, no one has challenged me until today. I also stated that the National Assembly was never consulted when the President traveled to purchase a new aircraft. Did I not say that? Was it delivered? It wasn’t. Thus, this government is dealing with far too many issues.
“The Minister of Works was informed about one of the administration’s flagship projects. Was the bidding process competitive? Was an EOI completed? They went ahead and started doing it, among other things.
“The point is pretty straightforward: we must acknowledge the existence of state capture. State capture: what is it? It occurs when the executive is now in charge of all the various branches of government. We are precisely there. Therefore, it doesn’t mean that some of us aren’t stating that this is incorrect.
