The plot by the leadership of the Senate to take further actions against some members of the Parliamentary Support Group for Buhari was largely responsible for Wednesday’s invasion of the Senate Chamber and the stealing of the mace, the symbol of legislative authority.
Investigations revealed that having suspended the secretary of the pro-Buhari group, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege (APC/ Delta Central) last week, the Senate had planned to suspend the Chairman of the same group, Senator Abdullahi Adamu (APC /Nasarawa) at Wednesday’s plenary to effectively subdue the group.
Adamu, a former Governor of Nasarawa State, was the Chairman of the Northern Caucus in the upper chamber of the National Assembly until last month when he was dethroned, following accusations of misappropriation of about N70 million belonging to the regional parliamentary caucus.
Adamu’s ordeal began after he led some senators, including Omo-Agege, to stage a walkout from the Senate Chambers in protest against the adoption of the Conference Committee Report on the amendment of the Electoral Act. In the wake of the controversy, Adamu and his colleagues addressed the Senate Press Corps during which they alleged that the amendment bill, which seeks to re-order the sequence of the 2019 general elections, was targeted at denying President Muhammadu Buhari of a second-term in office.
It was gathered that Adamu had been marked for suspension all along, but the action was deliberately delayed till that day apparently to enable them manage the tension that may arise. However, the plot to execute the suspension on Wednesday leaked to the pro-Buhari camp who promptly put up a plan to scuttle it.
It was learnt that as soon as the pro-Buhari Group got wind of the plan to suspend their leader (Adamu), an emergency meeting was held at his residence on Tuesday night. A source privy to the meeting told New Telegraph that during the parley, the group resolved that they must do everything possible to scuttle the day’s plenary to forestall the proposed action.
Sources in the National Assembly said that the invasion of the red chamber and taking away the mace became the favoured option of the group.
The Buhari loyalists were also said to have planned to move a step further if they succeeded in creating enough commotion to destabilise the red chamber. Our investigation showed the senators were poised to enforce a regime change in the red chamber, but for the dexterity of the Deputy Senate President, Dr. Ike Ekweremadu, who was able to take emergency measures by replacing the stolen mace immediately and continuing the business of the day.
Meanwhile, it was learnt that the leadership of the Senate yesterday reviewed the incident and has identified some of the lawmakers behind the plot to disrupt the activities of the chamber. Our source in the parliament also hinted that some security officers who allegedly had foreknowledge of the attack and collaborated with the invaders by simply standing aloof while the incident lasted have been pencilled down for sanctions.
The National Assembly is a high security zone with several checkpoints manned by security operatives. It hosts a division of the Nigeria Police with all the full compliments of personnel, vehicles and equipment including a bomb disposal unit. The men of the Mobile Police Force have the responsibility of guarding the outer gates everyday while the personnel of the Sergeant-At-Arms maintain round vigilance inside the expansive building on a daily basis.
It also has a Squad of the Department of State Services (DSS), the secret police. Everyone entering the building would encounter one or all of these security operatives who usually demand to see the National Assembly identity card before permitting one to access the facility. Besides these three main security groups, the National Assembly also hosts officials of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) and the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) who also assist in the maintenance of law and order. In this deluge of security personnel, the leadership of the National Assembly is yet to come to terms with the free access the “mace thieves” had when they struck on Wednesday, fuelling speculations of possible collusion.
Even Deputy President of the Senate, Ike Ekweremadu, expressed shock that the attackers passed through the several security checks into the National Assembly and made their way unhindered into the Senate Chamber and also escaped with the mace, vowing that the criminals must not go unpunished. His words: “It still beats the imagination of Nigerians and the civilised world that the attackers passed through the several security checks and barriers into the National Assembly and the inner recesses of this chamber and also escaped with the mace into the thin air despite the well-known fortified surroundings of this parliament. “Therefore, we hold that it will be a detour to the state of nature where life was lawless and brutish if what happened yesterday is allowed to go unpunished or to be swept under the carpet.
“It will never happen. We will get to the roots of the matter. We call on the Inspector General of Police and Director-General of DSS to ensure that all those, who plotted, aided, abetted, and executed this dastardly affront on our democracy and belittled Nigeria before the international community must be brought to book to serve as a deterrent to others. We will be inviting them next week to brief us on the state of the investigations.”
.new telegraph