By Pathfinder Reporter
Sunday, January 28, 2024
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The Southern Nigeria Elders Solidarity Forum has described as ill-conceived and unguarded, recent outbursts by Senators from the Northern part of the country over the planned relocation of certain departments of government and the 2024 budget, which they claimed was lopsided against the North.
They made their reaction known in a statement made available to newsmen in Ado-Ekiti on Sunday, saying allegations raised concerning both the planned relocation, and the budget outlook, did not represent the facts on the ground.
This is coming barely days after the 58 federal lawmakers, under the aegis of the Northern Senators Forum, condemned President Bola Tinubu over alleged unfair treatment of the North, in the 2024 national budget and approved the relocation of some departments of CBN and Aviation agencies to Lagos.
It is recalled that the Northern Senators had, in a widely publicized statement on Monday, alleged that projections and provisions of the N28.7tn 2024 budget, were unfair to the North. They also alleged that some federal agencies were being relocated to Lagos.
The Senators had made this known in a statement, signed by their spokesperson, Senator Suleiman Kawu Summaila (NNPP Kano South) on Monday in Abuja titled, “Allocation and distribution of funds in 2024 National Budget and Relocation of some Federal Agencies to Lagos,”
But reacting on Sunday, spokesman of the forum, Emmanuel Silas, expressed regrets that Senators who pride themselves as leaders of the people could suddenly switch energy to issues capable of setting regions against each other.
Silas described the reactions of the Northern senators as strange because they participated in scrutinizing the budget when it was presented to the National Assembly.
He said the Senators’ statement was not only unfortunate but also least expected of people of their caliber, saying such was capable of causing distractions in governance and creating unnecessary tension in the country.
It cautioned against deliberate attempts to undermine a government that had been widely acknowledged as doing everything humanly possible to take the country to its place of destiny, without negatively affecting any part of the country in whatever way.
According to Silas, the statement by the Senators indicated that the 2024 budget was either not well studied, or they looked the other way in getting the genuine facts that necessitated the planned relocation of certain departments of government to Lagos, which was aimed at administrative convenience.
Also, the Ekiti chapter of the Northern Peace and Justice Initiative of the Hausa Community, in a separate statement by its President, Abdulkabir Farouk, said contrary to claims by the Senators, there had never been any steps taken so far, to suggest that the Tinubu’s administration had plans to externalize any region of the country, or short-changed them in the scheme of things.
The group advised the Senators to channel whatever bothers them on the runnings of government, through a more mature ways, or at best, seek an audience with the President to discuss such matters, rather than engaging in activities, perceived to be tantamount to deliberate incitements or subversions.
On its part, the Coalition of Civil Society For Good Governance and Accountability, also called for caution among the Northern senators, saying they had benefited immensely in the National Assembly under the present administration.
According to their Chairman, Mr Tunde Olawale in an interview, “All Northern NASS members were involved with many northerners, as chairmen of key committees among several other fair treatments.
“For instance, we have the chairman, the House Committee on Appropriation, who is a Northerner from Kano. The ZIP projects are evenly distributed across the country, and all NASS members nominate projects.”(NAN)
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