By Nsan Ndoma–Neji, Calabar
A youth group operating in Cross River State, the Northern Cross River Democratic Front, NCRDF, has reacted to calls made yesterday by Northern Renaissance Assembly and Movement for Restoration of Cross River that Senator Stephen Odey should be barred from attending Senate plenary session.
The youth group, while berating the so called stakeholders stated that the agitators have no right whatsoever to pressurize the President of Senate to do their bidding.
NCRDF Coordinator, Mr. Jake Odama, urged the stakeholders not distract Senator Odey from performing his senatorial functions.
Recall that the stakeholders had on Wednesday in Calabar circulated a statement in the media space, calling on the leadership of the Nigerian Senate to bar Dr. Odey, the senator representing Cross River North senatorial district from participating from Senate’s activities, alleging that Odey had been kicked out of the Senate, following the February, 2021 Supreme Court judgement.
Claiming solidarity with Odey, the youth group urged the Senate President, Dr. Ahmad Lawan, not to listen to calls from any quarter except from legitimate quarters, as no group or individual has such powers to mount unnecessary pressure on a legitimate institution to do their bidding.
It said, “We have the confidence of the Senate leadership under the watch of distinguished Senator Lawan, that he would not allow himself to be cowed into doing what is not legitimate.
“The Senate is a reputable institution with integrity, and we believe that it cannot bend to any one’s bidding, because the candidate of their choice lost the Senate elections.”
The NCRDF also urged the Senate President not to heed to call from any front attempting to distract him from performing his legislative functions, stressing that Rt Hon. Jarigbe Agom Jarigbe did not complete the sanatorial primaries as Jarigbe abandoned the process midway upon realizing that he won’t make it successfully, should the process be completed.
In a related development,the media aide to Senator Odey, Mr.Paul Ojeka, in his reaction, said that the call from the stakeholders to stop his boss from performing his legislative functions was laughable.
Insisting that those claiming to be stakeholders in Cross River North senatorial district are crying fowl, because their pay master lost the elections to his boss, who is loved by almost everyone in the North senatorial district.
He said, “Go to Ogoja and do proper findings, Jarigbe didn’t contest any election. He absconded on the day of the primaries, perhaps because he was afraid of losing.
“Why would they prevail on the Senate President to stop Senator Odey from participating in plenary session of the Senate? This is laughable.
“The court knows it best, they aren’t court. Whatever pronouncements made by the court was done so on technical grounds, for the fact that they are not the court, they should leave Odey alone. The court knows what to do. It’s not their place to begin to prevail on the Senate President to do their bidding.”
