Bauchi State Governor, Bala Mohammed, has expressed full support for Senator Abdul Ningi, over his suspension from the Senate.
Ningi, the lawmaker representing Bauchi Central and also Chairman of the Northern Senators Forum was on Tuesday suspended following the interview he had with BBC Hausa. In the interview on Friday, Ningi claimed about N3.7tn was not allocated to specific projects in the 2024 budget.
He stated, “For the first time in Nigerian history, today we are operating two different budgets. One budget was approved by the National Assembly and signed by President Bola Tinubu and the one was implemented by the presidency.
“The one approved by us is N25tn while the one operating by the Federal Government is ₦28tn.
“Apparently, we discovered N3tn was inserted into the budget for projects without locations. This is the highest budget padding that happened in Nigerian history under Senator Akpabio’s watch.”
Furthermore, during a press briefing on Monday, the senator reiterated the accusation and expressed no fear of being suspended.
The President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, described Ningi’s offences as “grievous.”
A voice vote was conducted and a majority of the lawmakers voted in support of Ningi’s suspension for three months.
In a latest development, Bauchi State Governor, Bala Mohammed has expressed his support for the lawmaker. In a tweet via his official X account, he wrote,
“In today’s State Executive Council meeting, I made it clear that I stand firm in our support for Senator Abdul Ahmed Ningi, of Bauchi Central,”
He added, “I emphasised the importance of preserving dissent within our political landscape without resorting to punitive actions.
“I am committed to examining Senator Ningi’s situation further. It is common knowledge that Senator Ningi is one of the best-performing senators whose heritage and uprightness, ancestry and integrity are worthy of praise.”
Ningi also stepped down from his position as Chairman of the Northern Senators’ Forum.
