NASS INAUGURATION , MATTERS ARISING

MATTERS ARISING
10/06/2015
NASS INAUGURATION: THE PETULANCE OF APC
Talking points from the inauguration of Nigeria's National Assembly yesterday continue unabated. All media forms are still feasting on the dismembered remains of an outcome that threw political permutations of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) to the wind leaving party forces reeling and squealing.

APC spokesman, the National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed in a vitriolic reaction on June 9th 2015, 16:24[Nigerian Time] , almost two hours after Dr. Bukola saraki had emerged unopposed, as President of 8th Assembly of the Nigerian Senate , published on the party's website that :
  "... The APC has described as totally unacceptable and the highest form of treachery, the conduct of Tuesday's inauguration of the National Assembly that led to the emergence of... "
         ...Alhaji Lai Mohammed
         National Publicity Secretary,
          APC

Alhaji Lai Mohammed

Speaking for a party that recently won an election from a position of opposition, and using words like 'totally unacceptable' and 'treachery' for a proceeding that was conducted in public view, within the ambits of the provision of the constitution, not only smacks of petulance but may imply to close watchers of politics in Nigeria that the 'Change' mantra may simply have been a smoke-screen of sorts, and that the Party has no intention of changing the practice of 'ruling by special arrangement"
The extraordinary length to which the Party's leaders went to invoke a Presidential intervention, by summoning him to the failed (? mediation) meeting, to wield a 'presidential' big stick on the Party's senators so they tow they party line in electing their Principals within the Senate , flashes a red flag as well and brings to question the Independence of the President.
Whether Mr. President, by design or fortuitously failed to attend the meeting, this should also be a signal to him that there are still a thousand and one strings attached to his tailcoat and some of those strings are in the firm girps of some cold calculating magicians.
With all this background drama still playing out it is comforting that mr. President has accepted the outcomes of the proceedings at the National Assembly . A statement by the Special Adviser on Media and Publicity , Femi Adeshina indicates that: "... the President would rather that the process of electing leaders as initiated and concluded by the APC had been followed. Nonetheless, the President took the view that a constitutional process had somewhat occured... "
Put this way, this also flashes a red flag. "Somewhat" within the context of statement may have been used to show highlight the President's unwilling acceptance of the outcome of proceedings yesterday, but it casts a whole different spectrum of interpretation of procedures and proceedings going forward. Is this President going to henceforth question the constitutionality of all proceedings that do not favour his or the party's wishes?
It is the burning hope of the masses that mr. President would realize sooner than later that it is necessary to cauterize more than 80% of those strings on his tailcoats for him to truly belong " to everyone and to no one" as he proclaimed in his inaugural speech.

                                                        [Written by: Victor O. Sawyerr]
P.S. : The preferred  APC candidates for the Office of President of the Senate , Senator Ahmed Lawan and a group of about 25 Senators who missed the  proceedings yesterday indicated after todays session that they would be heading to the courts  soon to contest that proceeding.