Senate removes Ndume as Chief Whip for criticising Tinubu

The Senate has removed the senator representing Borno South Senatorial District, Mohammed Ali Ndume, as the Chief Whip of the upper chamber of the National Assembly.

Ndume’s removal followed a letter sent to Senate President Godswill Akpabio by the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), asking the senator to vacate his position as the Chief Whip of the red chamber.

The APC also asked Ndume to resign from the party.

The letter was read at the plenary in Abuja on Wednesday, July 17, 2024.

The APC National Chairman, Abdullahi Ganduje, and the party’s National Secretary, Ajibola Basiru, in the letter, nominated the senator representing Borno North, Tahir Monguno, to replace Ndume as the Senate Chief Whip.

The ruling party accused Ndume of making hurtful comments against the administration of President Bola Tinubu.

APC slams Senator Ndume: Tinubu working for Nigerians, not caged

The Star recalls that the senator recently lamented the inability to access Tinubu, saying the president shut his doors on some ministers and members of the National Assembly.

The senator, while saying that securing financial autonomy for Local Government Areas was the greatest achievement of Tinubu since he assumed office in 2023, added that the president was unaware of existential challenges in the country.

The APC, thereafter, lashed out at Ndume over his declaration that the president had been “caged”.

The party, in a statement issued by its National Publicity Secretary, Felix Morka, on Saturday, July 13, said Ndume failed to explain the use to which he had put access in seeking solutions to concerns that he might have.

Morka said it was understandable if the senator felt frustrated by his suggested inability to access the president, adding: “But this does not warrant or justify his outlandish declaration that the President had been caged in some way or ensconced from the reality of conditions in the country.

“Ndume’s heedless comments smack of an indulgent sense of entitlement to see the President on a whim. The President is busy doing the job Nigerians elected him for.

“He is the head of government, of which there are many critical parts equipped with power to process and deal with a wide range of simple to complex social, economic, political or security challenges.

“The President’s time is required to be used judiciously in attending to important matters of state.”

The Star