LP Senators Falling Below Obidient Movement Principles, Party Chieftain Alleges

The Chairman of the Labour Party in Enugu West senatorial zone of Enugu State, Chief Nnadume Offorkansi, has said the senators elected on the platform of the party have not lived up to the principles of the Obidient Movement, which enabled their victory during the 2023 general elections.

Offorkansi, a lawyer, who spoke in Enugu on Tuesday, was reacting to the 2024 padding allegation levelled against the Senate by the senator representing Bauchi Central in the National Assembly, Senator Abdul Ningi.

THE WHISTLER reports that Ningi was suspended by the Senate for three months for alleging that N3.7tn unattached to any projects was included in the 2024 Nigerian budget.

Offorkansi said LP senators’ silence on the matter was disappointing.

According to him, millions of Nigerians voted for Labour Party candidates during the last election with the goal of changing the old governance trajectory in Nigeria.

In his words, “The silence of senators of the LP on this matter falls below the principle of the Obedient Movement.

“Peter Obi represented an ideology during the 2023 polls. Nigerians welcomed the idea and sacrificed a lot.

“We wanted our elected senators to replicate the same at the National Assembly. But our NASS members have joined the bandwagon.”

Offorkansi also spoke on the suspension of Senator Ningi for three months by the Senate, saying the Senate acted beyond its capacity.

Quoting him, “I doubt if the Senate has that capacity. It is rather the role of the police to investigate the matter.

“Ningi’s suspension is unfair to the people of Bauchi Central. Has the Senate investigated it to know if it is true?

“It is a pity that our senators are using funds for constituency projects as their personal money. Senators have no business executing projects.

“They make laws. It is the executive arm that oversees project execution. The Senate can only oversight.”

He berated the Senate for not leading by examples. In his words, “I have always had reservations on Senator Godswill Akpabio becoming the Senate president. He has questions to answer at the Economic and Financial Crimes Commision, EFCC.

“I feel disappointed that LP senators have not condemned what is happening at the Senate.”