Senate as refuge for ex-governors

Oyinlola, Agagu, Fayose, Ngige keep date with fate on April 2, as they seek to revive their fading political career with a seat in the upper legislative chambers, writes Oluwole Josiah. The Senate cuts an image of a mature and hallowed chamber, which attracts very senior citizens in the polity. It confers honour and dignity to any of its members in both public and private arenas. Without doubt, it has justified its acclaimed status with the decorum its members exhibit during periods of political turbulence, in sharp distinction to the free -for- all, which the House of Representatives has been accustomed to. Little wonder that the legislative ambience and power of the upper chamber have become nectar to politicians who have enjoyed high political office, such as governors and ministers since democracy returned in the country in 1999. This perhaps further explains why former state military administrators such as senators David Mark, Tunde Ogbeha, Simeon Uduoye, Ahmed Mana, Joseph Akaagerger and Tanko Ayuba have between 1999 and 2007 made their way into the senate. The attraction became even stronger as the civilian governors served out their tenures in their respective states in 2003 and 2007 making the Senate a vehicle to keep their political career active. After the 2007 general elections, the number of ex-governors in the Senate increased geometrically. Chimaroke Nnamani of Enugu State, Taminu Turaki of Jigawa, Bukar Ibrahim of Yobe, Kabiru Gaya, Kano; Ahmed Makarfi, Kaduna; George Akume, Benue; Ahmed Yerima of Zamfara State, and Adamu Aliero of Kebbi State, found their way to upper legislative chamber. However, the performance of these ex-governors, with the exception of Makarfi, is nothing to write home about. A senator, who spoke in confidence with our correspondent, lamented that the contributions of the former governors had remained an issue of concern. According to him, only Ahmed Makarfi, who chairs the Senate Committee on Finance, has been remarkable among the ex-governors. Incidentally, Turaki and Nnamani are standing trial for charges of corruption filed against them by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and they are still going in and out of the courts to defend how they managed their states during their eight years tenure. Despite whatever might have been their performance, they are in the race for the April 2 National Assembly poll under different political platforms. Apart from those already there or seeking to be re-elected, a new crop of ex-governors are in the race for the senatorial elections. For them, it is an avenue for reviving their fading political career. One of the ex-governors in this political train is Dr. Chris Ngige, whose tenure was short-lived. He is of the Action Congress of Nigeria, a platform, from where he contested the 2010 governorship poll in the state against the incumbent, Mr. Peter Obi. Before he was removed from office by the Election Tribunal on accounts of being rigged into office by Peoples Democratic Party, Ngige demystified his former political godfather, Chief Chris Uba, and this brought him to national limelight. But with the governorship poll out of the question in Anambra in April, Ngige has thrown his hat into the ring for the Anambra Central senatorial contest; and will be facing the All Progressives Grand Alliance candidate, Prof. Dora Akunyili among others. Akunyili, resigned her ministerial position to seek election into the Senate, and is seen as a formidable candidate as she enjoys the support of governor Obi. Akunyili is not Ngige’s only headache; he will also have to overcome an incumbent senator, Senator Ani Okonkwo of the Accord Party. In Nasarawa West Senatorial District, former governor of the state, Abdullahi Adamu, is in a struggle of his life to take the seat of his erstwhile political associate, the ranking Senator Abubakar Sondangi, fondly called Dan Maliki by David Mark. Adamu clearly defeated Sodangi during the PDP primaries. Like Nnamani and Turaki, he has a case with the EFCC. A similar scenario is playing itself out in Ondo-South senatorial zone, as Olusegun Agagu, the immediate governor of the state, defeated Senator Hosea Ehinlawo who managed to sail through the wings of the Supreme Court to remain in the Senate in the last PDP primaries. Although it is believed that Agagu is popular and would easily get it by the asking, Hosea’s insistence on the seat by jumping to the Congress for Progressive Change, sustains a rematch scheduled for the next couple of days. However, a major threat to Agagu’s ambition is the Labour Party candidate, Mr. Boluwaji Kunlere. As was the case with Ngige, Agagu was removed by the Election Tribunal and replaced with Dr. Segun Mimiko of the LP. Given this scenario and the fact,that Mimiko and his party would like to use the senatorial election to make a statement — that they are truly in-charge — Agagu’s bid to go to the senate might be as difficult as making a rope out of sand. Kunlere, a former council Chairman, is not new to such contest; he had previously lost the seat to Ehinlawo under the PDP and with LP as the ruling party in the state, it seems that snatching victory away from its candidate will require a political miracle. Other contenders for the seat are Dr. Paul Akintelure of Action Congress and Mr. Sola Jimoh, brother of Jimoh Ibrahim, who is contesting on the platform of the National Transformational Party. Also, in Ekiti State, gregarious Ayo Fayose, a former governor, is back in the fray. He wants to represent Ekiti Central in the Senate in June; an ambition he intends to accomplish on the platform of the LP. Fayose believes that he would upstage the PDP candidate in Kayode Alufa. At the moment, the fault lines in the ACN following a battle between Bode Ola and Babafemi Ojudu over who flies the party flag in the senatorial district may work in Fayose’s favour. Undoubtedly, Fayose remains a grass roots politician, but things have changed significantly in the state since his impeachment inspired by the Federal Government under former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s administration. The ACN has taken over the state and might want to use the poll to test its might. He too, has an EFCC charge to contend with. In Osun State, recently ousted former governor, Chief Olagunsoye Oyinlola, is the PDP standard-bearer for the senatorial election. He had shoved Senator Simeon Oduoye aside at the last primaries to emerge. According to sources, his ambition to become a senator stems from the fact that he still eyes the governorship seat in 2015. The only way to remain politically relevant is to be in the senate, seems to be his logic. Yet, he has an uphill task in the hurricane called ACN that swept him out of office and ravaging the South-West zone. Besides, the ex-governor has Prof. Sola Adeyeye, a tested political combatant, and former member of the House of Representatives as a challenger. Another senator who has been observing the performance of the former governors in the senate noted that they erroneously thought they would continue to wield the kind of political or executive powers they had while they served as governors. He said, “We can see that, except for Ahmed Makarfi, who is doing so well in the Senate, the rest are just here doing nothing. You don’t even see them often in the Senate doing their legislative work, and when they attend committee meetings, they almost talk as if they are still governors. “I wonder what the next Senate will be like with more of these former governors coming. The situation of the Senate will be worse than what we have now. What experience do they have and would they be able to cope with the situation here in the Senate. That is why some of them don’t even come to the Senate, they stay away.” Mr. Kayode Ajulo is a senatorial candidate of the LP in the Federal Capital Territory. He believes that Nigerians are not getting from senators what they are yearning for. He said, “The majority of our senators perform below our expectation. It has gradually turned into a retirees forum where the qualification is that you must be retired or sacked, and in the absence of the next thing to do, you pick your party’s ticket and move to Senate, this shouldn’t be case. The senate is supposed to be the heartbeat of a dynamic and people’s legislature. Everywhere in the world, the Senate is the totem of parliamentary democracy; that is why it is called upper legislative house.” There is little evidence that the influx into the Senate is for the purpose of service to the people. If the former governors did not serve the people well as executive governors with huge resources at their disposals, it is therefore, wishful thinking that they would have the people in their hearts inside the hallowed chambers of the senate. However, the ultimate choice in deciding their fate rests with the electorate and the next six days will make the difference. By Oluwole Josiah Courtesy Of: Punch