Sen. Abaribe: No request to purchase a presidential plane was submitted to NASS.
Abuja— Yesterday, Abia South senatorial district senator Enyinnaya Abaribe stated that no one had petitioned the National Assembly for a new presidential plane before the purchase was finalized.
A new Airbus A330 that was acquired for President Bola Tinubu was unveiled by the Presidency in August.
Following the acquisition of the new jet, Nigerians criticized the presidency heavily, believing the president ignored the economic suffering of the majority in favor of his own luxury.
In one of his answers, presidential spokeswoman Bayo Onanuga stated that the aircraft that was bought was a “refurbished jet” rather than a brand-new one as had been claimed.
Members of the National Assembly were not exempt from criticism of the jet purchase; many accused them of approving the Presidency’s request for a new aircraft with ease.
But according to Senator Abaribe, who made an appearance on Channels Television’s Politics Today yesterday, the National Assembly never heard such a request.
He stated: “I am in the National Assembly, but I can assure you that no one—I repeat myself—brought anything to the National Assembly requesting that they authorize the acquisition of a new aircraft.
“No one brought anything, and it was done without my knowledge.” I’ve always been in the National Assembly, and I’ve never seen any documents. Nobody, ask anyone.
He claimed that the inability of the Presidency to submit a request to the National Assembly indicated that the legislators’ role as a check on the executive was not being effectively performed.The lawmaker expressed concern that the public views the members of the National Assembly as rubber-stamped, stating that this is the case because lawmakers believe they have fought hard but not achieved much, and they have attempted to work with the executive.
Join Our Social Media Channels:
WhatsApp: NaijaEyes
Facebook: NaijaEyes
Twitter: NaijaEyes
Instagram: NaijaEyes
TikTok: NaijaEyes
