Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has criticised the sacking of Senator Ali Ndume as Chief Whip of the Nigerian Senate.
Ndume, the member representing Borno South in the National Assembly, was removed as Chief Whip on Wednesday for insulting President Bola Tinubu’s administration.
He was succeeded by Tahir Monguno (Borno North).
In a statement issued on Thursday, Atiku criticised Senate leadership for the expulsion, referring to the upper chamber as President Tinubu’s puppet.
“This ugly tendency is being manifested by the steady posturing of our National Assembly, especially the Senate, of taking a reverse course in its core function and becoming a puppet in the hands of the President,” he said on X.
“Only yesterday, Senator Ali Ndume called for the President to wake up to his responsibilities and provide succour to address the biting hunger and poverty in the country. Ironically, the response of the @NGRSenate to his patriotic warning is to relieve him of his principal office as the Chief Whip of the Senate.”
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate in the 2023 general election also accused President Tinubu of displaying despotic tendencies.
He also took a swipe at the Tinubu administration, saying it is displaying excesses contrary to the general principle of democracy.
“In the evolution of systems of government, a major concern for thinkers was a governmental framework that would reduce the highhandedness of the executive arm of government.
“It was thought, and rightly so too, that a participatory approach to governance, such that will make the government derive its legitimacy from the people will better serve the interest of the masses.
“And thus, to make sure that the executive does not go overboard in the application of its powers, the legislative arm of government was conceived as a means of protecting the people from the authoritarian tendencies of wielders of state powers.
“Regrettably, however, the democracy in Nigeria in the current administration of President Bola Tinubu has become an anathema to that general principle of democracy as providing primary protection for the people against executive excesses,” Atiku stated.