The lawmaker representing Bauchi Central, Senator Abdul Ningi, has resumed his legislative duties in the upper chamber after a three-month suspension.
Ningi, a Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, senator, was sighted at the National Assembly premises in Abuja on tuesday being driven in his black Toyota Landcruiser Jeep.
Approaching the NASS gate, he stopped briefly to exchange pleasantries with journalists who were on the ground to welcome him back.
“Members of the press, thank you very much,” the excited lawmaker told them. “I got all your messages.”
When asked if he enjoyed his leave, the senator replied saying: “Very much.”
The senator was recalled on May 28, after a process was initiated by Deputy Minority Leader, Senator Abba Moro, who expressed regret on behalf of the suspended lawmaker. He pledged to assume full responsibility for Ningi’s actions, acknowledging the gravity of the suspension.
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The senator’s conduct during the period of suspension has been a matter of scrutiny and debate within the legislative body.
The President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, announced the unconditional recall of Ningi after a brief plea by some lawmakers.
Akpabio emphasised the senator’s resourcefulness, and described him as a valued member of the Senate, adding that the decision to recall Ningi transcends religious and ethnic divides.
Ningi was recalled some two weeks to the end of his three-month suspension which is supposed to terminate on June 12, 2024.
Ningi was suspended for three months after a long stormy session in the red chamber.
He had claimed in an interview that the Federal Government was operating two versions of the 2024 budget, and that the N28.7trillion Budget passed and signed into law by President Bola Tinubu was skewed against the North.
This did not sit well with many Senators. They described his claims as “far-fetched and unbecoming of a leader of his status”.
Akpabio, who had described Ningi’s offences as “grievous”, conducted a voice vote during which most of the lawmakers voted in support of Ningi’s suspension for three months.
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