Saraki rules N’Assembly from private residence

Firstclass newsline gathered that the senate President, Bukola Saraki,
has, since his election as the chairman of the National Assembly on
June 9, been attending to official matters at his private residence in
the Maitama area of the Federal Capital Territory because the N27.1bn
official homes being built for National Assembly's principal officers
are still under construction.
The former multi-million naira official residence of the Senate
President and those of other principal officers had been sold in 2010
at give-away prices by the then President Olusegun Obasanjo
administration under the monetisation programme.
Former Senate President, David Mark; his deputy, Ike Ekweremadu;
former Speaker, House of Representatives, Dimeji Bankole; and his
deputy, Usman Nafada, had in 2010, bought their official homes. Other
lawmakers also did likewise.
The new homes being constructed by the government for the federal
lawmakers at a cost of N27.1bn are still under construction.
When firstclass newsline crew visited Saraki's residence on Lake Chad
Avenue on Friday, observed politicians trooping in and out of the
building.
Apart from the influx of vehicles in the hitherto serene highbrow
area, hawkers have also besieged the area with their wares displayed
on the road side.
An Abuja based legal practitioner, Simon Ayede, in an interview with a
source on Monday, described the sale of the official quarters by the
Federal Government as unconstitutional because "there is a subsisting
Federal Government gazette that certain official residences should not
be sold."
Ayede argued that the gazette listed some of the official residences
that should not be sold to include, the Presidential Villa, the Senate
President House, that of his deputy, House of the Speaker of the House
of Representatives and that of his deputy.
He therefore urged President Muhammadu Buhari to reverse the sales of
the official quarters of the principal officers so that they could be
renovated for the use of the current occupants of the positions.
However, another resident of Abuja, Mrs. Stella Omowale, argued that
allowing the principal officers to live within the Apo Legislative
Quarters would expose them to security risk.
"Building new quarters for them within the Three Arms Zone will
guarantee their security since the place is highly secured and the
other arms of the government are also cited there," she said.
Firstclassnewsline.net