10th NASS: Akpabio told to step down as Senate President – CPD

The Coalition for Parliamentary Democracy (CPD) has called on the Senate President to step down from his position. According to the CPD, the Senate President has reportedly fallen out of favour with his fellow senators. The CPD made this statement in response to claims from Akpabio’s office that “a South-South Governor” was behind the alleged plot to impeach him.

The CPD has urged the former Akwa Ibom State Governor to stop pointing fingers and instead be transparent about why other lawmakers are opposed to his continued leadership in the Senate. This stance was articulated in a statement signed by Dr. Menike Johnson, the National Coordinator of the CPD, and released to the media on Wednesday.

The CPD has emphasised that the senators have cited Akpabio’s perceived inability to fulfil the duties of a Presiding Officer and provide transparent and credible leadership as their reason for wanting to remove him from office. They have also raised concerns about allegations of a lack of transparency, violations of established parliamentary norms and procedures, tarnishing the Senate’s reputation on financial matters, and allegations of favouritism in managing Senate affairs.

The CPD has criticised attempts to shift blame onto external individuals, characterising it as a self-indicting tactic that fails to address the serious issue of leadership shortcomings raised by the senators against the embattled Senate President. Given that he has acknowledged a loss of support among his colleagues and has not provided satisfactory responses to the significant concerns raised by the senators regarding leadership failures, the CPD advises Senator Akpabio to step down as Senate President.

In light of the critical state of the nation, the CPD argues that Nigerians cannot afford a Senate with unstable leadership that lacks the loyalty of its members.