The Nigerian National Assembly (NASS) is like a colony of bees led by the queen, the Senate President, flying and farting, polluting our democracy, arming gangs, and threatening to sink anyone who dares to challenge their over bloated powers. They are like the bee that hath honey in her mouth and a sting in her tail. These oversized bees specialize in stinging the poor instead of making honey for them. They live in an oversized colony and can do anything to defend their nests vigorously by stinging and pursuing threats to hive safety. They are a threat to our Democracy.
In his message to Nigerians on Democracy Day, the Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki, urged Nigerians to “speak out with strong voices on issues that constitute a danger to the nation’s democracy.” A few days later, some of the Offa “daredevil” robbers accepted the charge by revealing that they are ‘political thugs’ sponsored by Saraki and Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed. If this is true (as if we don’t know the truth), then Saraki’s use of dangerously armed thugs to intimidate political opposition to “win” elections is robbery and constitutes a threat to Democracy.
If some of the gang members who confessed to being associated with Senator Saraki can be this vicious in killing 17 innocent citizens, imagine what they will do to political opponents. Nigerians “must, [therefore] preserve democracy at all costs” as Saraki rightly said, but I will add, by cutting off his overgrown wings. The overgrown wings of the Senate President and the Speaker of the House of Representative of Nigeria (irrespective of who occupies those positions) have to be waned. Saraki and Dogara belong to the species of bees that specializes in stinging the opposition.
Paraphrasing Franklin Roosevelt, this small group of selfish men has clipped our wings in order to feather their own nest. To stop the queen of the colony of bees from flying and stinging, some beekeepers clip away part of their wings. The idea is that when the swarm of bees realizes the queen isn’t with them, it returns to the hive. Dino, Ben Bruce, Shehu Sani, Apkabio and Ekweremadu are floating around as butterflies, but they are stinging Nigerian democracy like a wild bee. Cutting their queen’s wing and sending them back to the hive will impede the growth of corruption.
When the flower blooms, the bees come uninvited. The flowers at the NASS has been blooming over the years since David Mark stabilized the unrest from members through a combination of draconian laws and oversized allowances. Members of the NASS who are too curious and poke their nose in the business of the queen of the bees, Saraki and his deputy Dogara have been stung, viciously for their curiosity. Speaker Dogara presides over the affairs of the “good for nothing” House by smiling around like a puppy being caressed by unseen hands as he flirts with members in the course of spreading official corruption
The legislative arm of the government is one of the central tenets of democracy. In addition to making laws, they check the excesses of the executive arm. But when it constitutes itself to a blackmailing tool, it becomes a threat to democracy. Instead of working for their constituents, the members of the NASS are serving their interest alone. Until will end this impunity in the NASS that has constituted itself into a stand-alone opaque government, bigger than the country, we won’t be able to achieve the progressive goals education reform, improved power generation, job creation and ending poverty
The NASS will do anything to protect their corrupt members and those that are breaking Nigerian laws. They will launch attacks at the incompetent Nigerian Police Force; refuse to pass the budget in order to force the hands of the executive arm of government (Okonjo-Iweala is a witness); cut off “oxygen” (AKA ‘owo’) from non-compliant members; keep attacking those who dare investigate, prosecute or challenge the impunity of the Senate President; vilifies opposition and shuts down the operations of media houses that dare voice a suspicion at the leadership.
A clipping of the Saraki and Drogaa’s wings is, therefore, long overdue. What David Mark started in the Senate, Bukola Saraki has elevated to a new level. The NASS rather than checking the excesses of the Buhari led administration have constituted themselves to an autocratic republic. The lawmakers perpetrated their corrupt acts in the oversight of Ministries, Departments, and Agencies. With the help of Finance Minister, Kemi Adeosun, the NASS leadership under Bukola Saraki and Drogba have settled themselves with phony projects worth more than one hundred and fifty Billion Naira.
It’s bad enough that the executive arm of the federal government is a conduit for siphoning public funds. The anti-corruption war of the Nigerian Presidency is like cobwebs, which may catch small flies, but let wasps and hornets break through. It is futile, therefore, to believe that the executive is capable of clipping the wings of the members of the NASS. They have always and will keep escaping through the net opened by some elements within the executive itself. Also, thanks to “Senate Rules” and “House Rules”, the corrupt setup of the NASS has in effect turned it into a massive source of siphoning public fund “legally” and unchallenged.
Finally, whether the link between Saraki and the notorious Offa robbers is substantiated by the incompetent Nigerian Police Force, or whether he is giving a “soft landing” in exchange for his loyalty, Saraki’s wing will not be waned. The flowers in APC appear to be dying, while it is blooming in SDP and ADC, as it is being watered in PDP. Very soon, the bees in the NASS led by Saraki and Dogara with abandon APC for a new hive in one of these parties. Once in a new political party, Saraki and Dogara’s colony of bees will retain the impulse to swarm and sting.
Clipping the wings of a corrupt swarm of bees is, therefore, indispensable for the national progress. Like the bumble bee, they were never meant to fly. But because our quasi-democracy is founded on “chop-I-chop” philosophy, they thrive by sharing the national wealth. The only way to permanently clip the wings of these bees is by making sure that they don’t get back to the NASS by 2019. We, therefore, need a virgin queen and fresh bees in the Nigerian Senate and not this present colony ran by over-corrupt former governors.
Everyone should have a voice in politics not because Saraki asked us to but because it is our inalienable right as citizens of Nigeria. Let us stand up, get involved in order to inject fresh influx of ideas in the Nigerian democratic experiment. We should not leave our legislative arm of government to men that have turned themselves to stinging bees. Join hands and let us take our government back.
Together, we can.
You can email Churchill at Churchill.okonkwo@gmail.com or follow him on Twitter @churchillnnobi
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