Ndume confirms Senate presidency aspirants offering bribe, says ‘very unfortunate’
By Jeph Ajobaju, Chief Copy Editor
Senator Ali Ndume (APC, Borno South), one of the longest serving members of the Red Chamber, has confirmed that some Senate President aspirants are offering as much as $200,000 bribe to their colleagues to vote for them.
He made the disclosure on Arise TV when he was asked about the amount of money being shared to Senators-elect to buy their votes in the 10th Senate leadership election.
“I’ve said it several times that the unfortunate thing that is happening is that the other candidates are talking about money,” he stressed, per Daily Post reporting.
“The only qualification that they are displaying is the amount of money that they tell Senators-elect that they can give them.
“People are talking about figures, but nobody has approached me. Some are talking about 10, 20, 30, 40 and even more than that.
“Some are even boasting that they will give every Senator up to $200,000. Figures are flying. That is the truth. That is honestly very unfortunate.”
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Lawmakers bribing for positions in new NASS leadership, says Ndume
Ndume had first announced in April how ranking and new lawmakers in the incoming National Assembly (NASS) were already paying bribe to get posts even as the new leadership will not be inaugurated until June when the current one expires.
He made the disclosure on Channels Television where he also said he would have won his run for Senate President in 2019 if he had money to by his way.
Ndume, who has been in the NASS for 20 years, pushed for an “Unexplained Wealth Act” to deal with corrupt politicians with suspicious wealth.
“There should be Unexplained Wealth Act so that if you display wealth that is not in tandem with your income, you should be investigated and (the wealth) confiscated and if it is extensive, you should be prosecuted,” he canvassed.
State capture by ‘kleptocrats and plutocrats’
“Now, you can see what is happening, they are trying to buy the position. The position in the leadership of this country is becoming those that belong to kleptocrats and plutocrats. Democracy is no longer there,” Ndume lamented.
“They are buying it already. Didn’t you [hear] the accusation that they are sharing money? And I was even thinking in the last election, ‘if I had more money, I would have won.’ I don’t have money.”
The APC won the majority of NASS seats in this year’s election with more than 50 out of 109 seats, and more than 160 out of 360 House of Representatives seats.
Ranking and greenhorn APC lawmakers have expressed interest in highly coveted positions in the Red and Green Chambers – among them Orji Kalu, Jibrin Barau, Godswill Akpabio, Abdulaziz Yari, and Osita Izunaso.