A Federal lawmaker, Sen. Philip Gyunka, has in Lafia, said that any plot to illegally impeach the President of the Senate, Dr Bukola Saraki, will be strongly resisted.

Gyunka, representing Nasarawa North, said this at a rally to mark his official declaration to run for Nasarawa State governorship election.

Gyunka, who expressed concern over the role played by the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Mr Adams Oshiomhole in the matter, said the position of the Constitution on who should be President of the Senate was clear.

According to him, unlike majority and minority leadership, which are from majority and minority parties, a lawmaker can be president of the senate irrespective of party affiliation.

“Besides that, there are conditions for impeachment should lawmakers be dissatisfied with whoever they chose to lead them.

“The law is clear on this. If two third majorities say they do not want him, he will be removed.

“But for Oshiomhole to keep threatening that Saraki must be impeached when he is not a lawmaker, beats my imagination.

“It is obvious from all his threats that there might be plans to do something unlawful, which we will resist vehemently.

“It beats my imagination that Nigeria, a country that should play the big brother when it comes to respect for the rule of law would be disgracing itself before the international community with this kind of development.”

He pointed out that the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) lawmakers were already keeping vigil to stop any of such moves.

“We are keeping watch on their plans.

“If they want the Senate President removed, which is impossible they must have two third majorities.

“They have been attempting and failing. I know they will still make attempts but they will not succeed because I know Nigerians will not allow them to make mockery of the nation’s democracy.

“If you hear a lawmaker speaking, he is speaking the minds of thousands of people.

“How then should someone, who was appointed and has neither gone to the rural areas to feel the pulse of the people, nor held town hall meeting be insisting that a man that was duly chosen by his colleagues be removed at all course.

“Oshiomhole should be educated that this is not unionism. This is an issue that has to do with the Constitution and we will not allow him to violate it,” he said.

On his ambition to run for the governorship election of the state, Gyunka said it was borne out of passion to bring the state out of the woods.

He said it was disheartening that despite huge human and mineral resources among other potentials, the state had not been able to meet the needs of the people.

He called on Nigerians take advantage of the forthcoming general elections to vote for people that have their interests at heart.

He urged them to go beyond expressing their grievances, to getting their Permanent Voter Cards (PVC) before the expiration date, to vote for people that would meet their needs and aspirations.

According to him, all the crises we are facing as a nation today is because we keep voting in the wrong persons.

The Nasarawa State PDP Chairman, Mr Francis Orugu, while wishing Gyunka the best in his political ambition, decried the crisis in the national assembly.

He expressed concern at the manner in which the APC national chairman was piloting the affairs of the party.

According to him, a country that is going through so many challenges, particularly in the buildup to the 2019 general elections does not require further tension.

“As leaders, we should not overheat the polity because people are already living in fear.

“I was also a legislator in the State House of Assembly; I know what leadership is all about.

“Unfortunately, Oshiomhole wants to direct that there must be a change of leadership because he is no longer comfortable with Saraki because he left APC.

Orugu called on Nigerians to rise to the occasion by speaking against any action that would subject the country to ridicule before the international community.

The Bridge News

Nigeria must stop relying on crude oil earnings as the revenue it generates from the commodity is not economically sustainable, a former United Nations Permanent Representative and Under Secretary-General to the world body, Prof Ibrahim Gambari, as well as heads of other organisations, have said.
Speaking on the sidelines of the 2018 Leadership Impact and Sustainability Awards, organised by the CEO Clubs Network Nigeria in Abuja, Gambari, who described himself as a stakeholder in the oil sector, said it was high time the Federal Government diversified the nation’s economy.

Gambari alongside heads of other organisations, told our correspondent in separate interviews that the instability in crude oil prices had revealed some of the negative consequences on why it was wrong to depend on crude as a major revenue source.

The former UN Permanent Representative, who is currently a member of the UN independent eminent experts on the implementation of the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action, said, “We can’t afford to fully embark on the process of diversifying the Nigerian economy. This is because revenue from crude oil sale is no longer sustainable.

“And for us to diversify, we have to invest in research and development so as to acquire the right knowledge and skills. We cannot continue to depend on crude oil for our foreign exchange earnings. When you look at it critically, how many people does the oil sector employ?

“You will agree with me that the biggest challenge we have now is youth unemployment, not just in Nigeria, but in Africa and to some extent globally. So we have to diversify into the industrial sector, service provision, research and development, education and agriculture, because those are the sectors that have the capacity to employ more people.”

The Founder, Nigeria Democratic Congress Party, Johnson Edosomwan, who also got an award for his laudable performance in business, stated that the country’s dependence on crude oil should be discontinued.