FORMER PRESIDENT OLUSEGUN OBASANJOR ASKED TO POINT OUT “rogues and robbers” who he knows in the state and federal house of assembly

The lawmakers also called for a probe of the ex-
president’s remarks.
The anger of the Senate was conveyed by their
spokesperson, Enyinnaya Abaribe, who addressed
a media briefing on behalf of his colleagues
At the House of Representatives, the Speaker,
Aminu Tambuwal, brushed aside an attempt by
deputy minority leader, Suleiman Kawu Sumaila
(ANPP, Kano), to table the subject for discussion.
Mr. Tambuwal said there was no room for
debates, but referred the comments to the Ethics
and Privileges committee, a sign that the issue
may never be revisited.
The former president had on Tuesday lashed out
at the National Assembly and state Houses of
Assembly as institutions filled with “rogues and
armed robbers” at an event in Lagos attended by
two former heads of state, Yakubu Gowon and
Ernest Shonekan.
The Fourth annual conference of the Academy for
Entrepreneurial Studies also attended by
Governor Babatunde Fashola of Lagos state and
retired Chief Justice of the federation, Muhammed
Uwais, discussed building strong structures and
systems for the nation bedevilled by the twin ills
of corruption and inefficiency.
Mr. Obasanjo criticized the legislature, as the
leading institution amongst the nation’s most
corrupt and inefficient. Other corrupt institutions,
he said, are judiciary and the police.
“Integrity is necessary for all systems and
institutions to be strong.
“Today, rogues, armed robbers are in the state
houses of assembly and the national assembly.
What sort of laws will they make?” he asked.
On the judiciary, the former president said “the
judiciary is also corrupt. During my tenure, many
of the corrupt judges were removed, some are
still there.
“If the judiciary becomes corrupt, where is the
hope for Nigeria?
“Justice no doubt will go to the highest bidder.
The judiciary did not see anything wrong with a
former governor but the same set of evidence
was used to convict him in the UK.”
On corruption in the police, Mr. Obasanjo said:
“the police are even the worst. Well I will not
lament; I will only say, let us understand our
problem and emphasize the good ones.”
The former president had accused the National
Assembly of padding national budgets and
drawing huge and unjustified earnings.
Minority members of the House then, referred to
Mr. Obasanjo as the “grandfather of corruption,”
while the senators called for proof.
But the senate spokesperson on Wednesday said,
“The National Assembly has great respect for the
person of the former president of Nigeria Chief
Olusegun Obasanjo and the National Assembly
can never engage in any talk back to the
president.
“We actually feel that the former president would
help the National Assembly and indeed also help
Nigeria in the new spirit of transparency and
openness by assisting the National Assembly by
naming those that he knows in the national
assembly as either rogues or criminals.
“That would help us to be able to sanitize the
polity and we sincerely thank him for his role in
Nigeria as someone who cares very deeply about
the Nigerian state and how it is at the moment.
And not just President Obasanjo , we also urge
other Nigerians who are concerned about Nigeria
to also in the spirit of transparency let us know
whatever information that they have so that we
can use it to check ourselves and to be able to
make Nigeria a better place.”
At the House, the minority leader raised the issue
as a breach of lawmakers’ privilege describing Mr.
Obasanjo as lacking credibility and remaining
vengeful at the federal lawmakers since they
denied the ex-president a tenure elongation.
“I am not an armed robber neither am I a rogue.
His greatest grouse against us is that we refused
him third term in office and since then we have
become his enemies. But Obasanjo does not have
credibility in Nigeria. Remember he was dragged
to court by his own son accusing him of sleeping
with his wife,” he said.
The speaker overruled debates on the issue and
ordered an ethics committee probe