PRESIDENT of the Senate, Senator Ahmad Lawan, said yesterday that the National Assembly has no reason whatsoever to fight President Muhammadu Buhari in order to please anybody in the country.
Lawan stated this when he received in Abuja a delegation from Adamawa State which paid him a visit in appreciation to the National Assembly for converting the Modibbo Adama University, Yola, into a conventional university.
The delegation was led by Senator Aishatu Dahiru Ahmed and the Vice Chancellor of the University, Professor Abdullahi Liman Tukur.
Lawan said: “When we disagree, we will do so, but if we have no reason to disagree, we will not do that because we want to please anybody.”
It would be recalled that senators and Nigerians had asked President Muhamma-du Buhari to sack the service chiefs because of their failure to end security challenges confronting Nigeria, which the President has failed to do
Lawan hailed the efforts of the armed forces in restoring security to parts of Nigeria, saying the spate of insecurity across states was gradually being reversed.
He noted that recent developments showed an improvement in efforts made by the armed forces towards addressing the spate of insecurity in parts of the country.
The Senate President said: “Those of us in position of leadership today are probably more challenged than any set of leaders. We need to pray, but we also need to act, work hard and apply ourselves fully and work committedly to ensure that we serve Nigerians.
“Nothing is impossible, this situation of insecurity gradually is being reversed. I am particularly happy with recent developments about our armed forces. They are doing better than they were doing before.
“I’m sure the economy will also start to improve, and we will get out of recession that we entered last month.
“With the implementation of the capital budget 2020 up till the end of March, and of course, the start of the implementation of the 2021 budget, the economy will receive a boost.”
Lawan, who noted that the conversion of the university was the outcome of a collaborative effort between the legislature and the executive arms of government, said the ninth National Assembly would be judged fairly by Nigerians for its pro-people legislation, in spite of the COVID-19 pandemic which slowed the country’s pace of development.
“I will take this opportunity to commend Mr. President for assenting to that bill. This is what we call cooperative governance. We work with the executive to ensure that Nigerian people benefit from democracy.
“We have set our eyes on our target of making Nigeria better and making Nigerians safer. What matters to us is what we are able to achieve at the end of the day.
“History will judge us very fairly, and without sounding immodest, I’ll like to take this opportunity to congratulate the ninth National Assembly.
“The ninth National Assembly has achieved so much between 2019 till date for the benefit of this country, despite the pandemic, and the secret is unity and harmony.’’
Earlier in his remarks, the Vice Chancellor of Modibbo Adama University, Yola, Professor Abdullahi Liman Tukur, said the university was set to fully transform into new status of a conventional university, conferred on it by an Act of Parliament signed into law by President Muhammadu Buhari penultimate week .
