By Musa Baba Adamu
The Senate Chief Whip, Ali Ndume, has disclosed that he warned the suspended Bauchi Central Senator, Abdul Ningi over the allegation of budget padding to the tune of N3.7 trillion.
Ndume said he warned Ningi after the Senator informed him about the budget padding to the tune of N3.7 trillion but he never listened.
The Senate had suspended Ningi for three months after lawmakers deliberated over the allegations he raised.
However, speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today, Ndume said when the Bauchi Senator first presented the case to him, he told him to provide evidence, which he could not.
Ndume accused Ningi of making the 2024 budget an ethnic and political issue, which is wrong.
Ndume said: “I sat next to the Senate Leader (Opeyemi Bamidele), he was very angry about what Ningi did, but honestly me too. What he (Ningi) did was wrong because I was involved.
“In the first instance, it started when they said capital projects were skewed to the South. The total in that budget that was brought before us by the President was not up to N9 trillion, it was N8.9trn and they are talking of skewed capital projects to the South and the total adding up to N15 trillion.
“That N15 trillion is strange, even with the amendment that we made, the capital component of this budget is not up to that.
“I told him he was wrong. I had even warned him when he brought the issue to me. I had told him to get a consultant to analyze the budget. But he refused to listen to me.
The Ondo State Publicity Secretary of NNPP, Wasiu Sanusi, said yesterday in Akure that there was an urgent need to stop the trend to prevent it from degenerating into a crisis.
Sanusi said that a faceless group had been destroying the billboards of its governorship aspirants to prevent it from unseating the ruling party in the state.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had slated the off-cycle governorship elections in Ondo State on November 16, 2024.
The commission’s Spokesperson, Sam Olumekun, said the tenure of the Governor of Ondo State will end on February 23, 2025.
“As provided in Section 178 (2) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended), election into the said office shall be held not earlier than 150 days and not later than 30 days before the expiration of the tenure of the last holder of the office,” INEC said.
Ondo State is among the eight Nigerian states whose governorship elections are held outside the general elections cycle due to the outcomes of previous litigations.
The others are Anambra, Osun, Edo, Ekiti, Bayelsa, Kogi and Imo states.
According to INEC, the party primaries are to be held from April 6 to April 27, 2024, while submitting the list of nominated candidates through the online portal will start on April 29, 2024 and close on May 20, 2024.
Sanusi said, “NNPP is the main opposition party in Ondo State, the destruction of party aspirants’ billboards could degenerate into a crisis. We appeal to security operatives to stop the trend.”
He said that NNPP would not have reacted to the development but realised that if the trend was not contained, other party faithful could do the same, leading to disruption of a peaceful election.
