THE ATTACK DOGS AND ITS MASTER

Emodi Disowns Okupe over Attacks on National Assembly

18 Oct 2012

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Doyin Okupe

Onwuka Nzeshi and  Dele Ogbodo

The Special Adviser to the President on National Assembly Matters, Senator Joy Emodi, has disowned some presidential aides and cabinet ministers over  some negative  comments credited to them against the National Assembly.

This came as the Senate President, Senator David Mark, Wednesday urged President Goodluck Jonathan to checkmate two of his aides, Messrs Doyin Okupe and Ahmed Gulak, over their persistent inflammatory statements which he said were capable of straining the existing cordial relationship between the executive and the legislative arms of government.

Addressing journalists on the issue yesterday, Emodi, said comments that  tended to portray any crises of confidence between the executive and the legislature, were unnecessary and that their promoters were on their own.

Emodi in a veiled reference to some comments credited  to  the Special Adviser to the President on Public Affairs, Okupe, in respect of  the  criticisms of the 2013 Appropriation Bill by members of the parliament, said such reactions did not reflect presidency’s views.

Emodi said that it had become imperative to put the records  straight  to avoid any unnecessary rancour between the two arms of government.

“Let me state categorically that the alleged statements neither reflect the views of President Goodluck Jonathan  on the National Assembly nor the enormous respect he has for the institution and the cordial relationship he has encouraged between the executive and the legislature.

“In other words, those to whom the statements were credited were on their own and never spoke the mind of Mr. President,” Emodi said.
She explained that as long as the  legislature remained  the central link in the presidential system, the  President will continue to accord the National Assembly its due respect.

According to Emodi, the leadership of the President is not only  predicated on the rule of law, his personal political temperament has  never be  averse to constructive criticism.

Emodi disclosed that as  the Special Adviser to the President on National Assembly Matters she  has worked hard  to ensure constant communication and cordial working relationship between the Presidency and the National Assembly.

“Any gray areas have always been sorted out  cordially through dialogue inspired by mutual institutional and individual respect. Mr. President has exhibited maturity in uncommon measures. I therefore want to advise that restraint and maturity are the watchwords in executive-legislative relationship as rash and hasty comments on legislative thrusts or executive policies could be counterproductive,” she said.

Emodi  reassured members of the National Assembly and the public of the continued cordial working relationship between the executive and the National Assembly.

A motion titled: “Inflammatory Statements against the National Assembly by the Ministers and Aides of the Presidents,” tabled for debate by Senator Abdul Ningi, representing Bauchi Central senatorial district, stated that the upper legislative chamber was most scandalised by the recent statement credited to Gulak where  he described the lawmakers as talking like illiterates while addressing reporters recently on President Jonathan’s assent to bills passed by the lawmakers.

He said: “He has further provoked members of the National Assembly by saying that they were passing laws that were not implementable.”

Holding brief for the President as a gentleman, Mark, said: “The President is a perfect gentleman, nobody can fault him. If you have had personal relationship with him you will know that he is a gentleman.

“What is however disturbing is that he has surrounded himself with aides who are far from being gentlemen in any respects. Aides who in my opinion have failed woefully to do what they are suppose to do. And because they are totally incapable both mentally and otherwise in doing their work, they are now finding a way to please Mr. President and they think they can please him by attacking or disparaging the national Assembly by trying to belittle us and give the impression that we don’t know what we are doing. It is extremely unfair.”

According to Mark, such inflammatory statements are totally unnecessary and unfortunate.

“They should have been people who should really try to build bridges between the executive and the legislators, but they have been the direct opposite.
“I think that if there is any bridge for now they want to demolish it so that they can be on their own and in the process take advantage and give the President the impression that he need to do something through them so that they can cement the relationship. We don’t want an intermediary between the executive and the legislatures,” the Senate President added.

Speaking further, he said: “I’m not aware of any aide who has gone and won election in his local government areas, yet they find it very easy to make comment about the National Assembly.

“They are clearly not on the same wave length with President Jonathan, and I’m surprised that neither Okupe nor Gulak, has retracted the statements credited to them from the media.

“Certainly they are operating on their own. They are fifth columnists who do not want the President to succeed, but on the other hand we will not allow detractors to force us away from the course on which we set our radar.”

In his reaction, the Deputy Senate President, Senator Ike Ekweremadu, said it was unfortunate that the President’s aides who are supposed to be directing the President are the ones misdirecting him.

Ekweremadu said: “If I were President Jonathan, he will not last one day in my office, because he is just putting him on the path of confusion and conflicts with an otherwise institution that has no problem with him. So my take on this is that maybe we can take advantage of his advice to Dr. Jonathan.” 

The Deputy Senate President added that it was most unfortunate that Gulak is leaving a legacy that would not positively impact on generations to come with his unguarded statement.

Also speaking on the issue, Senate Majority Leader, Senator Victor Ndoma-Egba, said the President was being surrounded by aides that were overzealous, and doing damage to the existing relationship between the executive and the lawmakers.

Ndoma-Egba said: “I say this because of the reaction of Okupe to both the Senate President’s and the Speaker’s speeches is totally unnecessary and absolutely uncalled for because anybody who listened to both of their speeches, nothing was said that was not known by Nigerians and nothing was said by both of them that is not contained in the Constitution.

“So it appears that President Jonathan has surrounded himself with aides that are not in tune with this country and not in tuned in the constitution.”