Senate President, Dr Ahmad Lawan on Friday explained why the Senate is an important and critical upper legislative chambers in the nation’s democratic environment, stressing that a vibrant and resilient democracy is not attainable without an institutional arm called the legislature.
According to the Senate President ” without the National Assembly what you have is not democracy anymore” as it represents an important and vital arm of government under the presidential system of government.
Recall that under a democratic system, there are normally three arms of government, namely the executive, legislature and judiciary.
While underlying the critical role of the Senate as the Upper legislative Chambers, Dr Lawan said “the Senate is a leveler because in the House of Representatives, population is major – that is why some states will have five, six members and others have up to 20.”
The Senate President who faulted those clamouring for the scrapping of the upper legislative Chambers over perceived huge emoluments said the annual budget of the National Assembly is less than one per cent of the nation’s 2021 budget.
Dr Lawan urged those making such clamour to feel free to exercise their constitutional right to vote in 2023 to either vote in or vote out lawmakers from their constituencies whom they feel have not represented their constituents satisfactorily or have under-performed during the lifetime of the 9th National Assembly
The Senate President spoke on Friday while declaring open a retreat for top management staff of the National Assembly and National Assembly Service Commission in Abuja, FCT.
He explained: “Without the National Assembly and the legislature across the country, what you have is not democracy anymore.
“So the value of the legislature and National Assembly to Nigerians is democracy. If you take out the legislature, it might not be a dictatorship but certainly not a democracy.
“So when we always debate on jumbo pay and not the functions of the National Assembly – what we are able to do and what we are not able to do, ask for what you think we should be doing rather than saying close down the Senate or the National Assembly.
“Do you understand the implications of what would happen if we close the senate? I am not saying because I am in the Senate.
“The Senate is a leveler because in the House of Representatives, population is major – that is why some states will have five, six members and others have up to 20.
“So if you say close down the Senate, there will be a day when people will cry foul.
” In the Senate, what Kano produces is what Bayelsa will produce. Three senators in Kano and three senators in Bayelsa, so that stabilises the system.
“In a budget of N13 trillion the National Assembly will get about N125bn to N128bn. That is less than 1 percent. So where is the remaining 99 percent”
He described the Senate as a leveler which ensures that all parts of Nigeria are most equitably, most effectively, most uniformly and most proportionately represented.
This is quite unlike the House of Representatives where states with higher populations produce the highest number of lawmakers, thereby disregarding the principles of uniform, balanced and even representation.
In addition, the Nigerian Senate is the Upper Legislative Chambers which functions like that of the United States Senate where Nigeria borrowed her presidential system of government from with little or no modifications.
