in

How Senegal sacked its Senate and why it won’t happen in Nigeria

The Senate is fast losing the goodwill and support of Nigerians following recent events, including but not limited to its purported purchase of 108 Toyota Land Cruiser SUV V6 2016 model at twice the original price, spending N3.8 billion in the process.

Calls have come from different quarters that they return the luxury rides as their spending reeks of recklessness, greed and insensitivity as the Nigeria Labour Congress noted. Others have called for the outright sacking of the entire Senate as a panacea to the wastage being endured through the institution. Those advocating the sack of the Nigerian Senate have cited the example of Senegal which sacked its Senate in 2012 to save money during the cash crunch.

That might not be realistic, however, as the Senate that was sacked by Senegal wasn’t a part of its National Assembly and its members weren’t elected. Most of the senators were appointed directly by the president as rewards to loyal party workers who did not get elected to the larger National Assembly.

It also pertinent to note that the Senegalese Senate was dissolved by a vote which was passed into law by the National Assembly .

If Nigeria were to sack its Senate, the constitution has to be amended! And amendments only happen through the National and state assemblies. So, sacking them is almost impossible.

But Nigerians can keep the pressure up, and move many steps forward by calling for the recall of their senators. They can start by signing petitions calling for the recall.

DanielFayemi for Encomium.ng

Encomium

Written by Encomium

A media, tech and events company.

What do you think?

Leave a Reply

Avatar

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Buhari receives Vice President Yemi Osinbajo and Senator Udo Udo Udoma

Adenuga on auto cruise, now worth $11.1 billion