A Former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara has alleged that a Nigerian have raised concern that the parliamentary bill in the Senate might be part of a plan for President Bola Tinubu to transition to a Prime Minister role after his presidential term. He noted that the parliamentary bill is being sponsored by a representative from the South West, specifically from President Tinubu’s home state.
He acknowledged that such observations are valid, stating that while parliamentary democracy could be more effective than the presidential system, there are risks that the initiative could be driven by personal agendas. He also recounted a conversation where someone pointed out that the bill is led by Honorable Abdul Samad from the caliphate, suggesting that this effort might aim to ensure that the North could consistently produce a Prime Minister.
He said in a live coverage by Symfoni from 0:28, ‘The parliamentary bill itself in the National Assembly, sponsored by somebody from the South West and, as a matter of fact, from the President’s state. And somebody asked me that is this not President Tinubu’s plan to transit to a Prime Minister after he has completed his term in presidential democracy? And I said, “Well, I cannot dispute this, but I believe it’s a valid observation.” The parliamentary democracy is better than presidential, but the only challenge is that someone is trying to use it to further a personal agenda.
And then I got another call from someone who said, “Can’t you see that this thing is led by Honorable Abdul Samad, who is from the caliphate, and that they want us to go back to parliamentary democracy so that the North can always produce the Prime Minister?” And that “this was the problem and the reason why we abandoned this parliamentary system of government.” I said, “Well, maybe it’s a legitimate point.” So, this informs us about how difficult it is, in the context of our country, to hold a rational discourse such as this.”