Saturday PUNCH reliably gathered on Friday that the bone of contention bordered on what should be discussed at the plenary on Tuesday.
It was learnt that senators, who are loyal to the Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki, were insisting that the only agenda would be the consideration of President Muhammadu Buhari’s budget for the 2019 elections.
The anti-Saraki lawmakers, on the other hand, said nothing was sacrosanct, adding that they could raise the issue of the leadership of the Senate.
Following the defection of the Senate President and 13 other senators from the APC to the PDP, the ruling party had called on Saraki to resign.
But the Senate President on Wednesday said he would resign only if two-thirds of senators passed a vote of no confidence in him.
A pro-Saraki senator, who confided in Saturday PUNCH, said, “On Tuesday our focus will be INEC budget. Those who think we will debate majority and leadership issues are wasting their time.”
But another senator, who is opposed to Saraki, said, “No issue is sacrosanct. Saraki’s issue will come up on Tuesday.
Senator Ovie Omo-Agege, who is a member of the Parliamentary Support Group, a group of President Muhammadu Buhari’s loyalists in the National Assembly, said the APC senators would use every opportunity to seek Saraki’s exit from the Senate presidency.
According to him, there are legal and moral reasons for Saraki to quit the Senate presidency.
Omo-Agege, in an interview with one of our correspondents, said, “The moment Saraki defected from the APC to the minority party, PDP, he no longer has the moral, political and legal rights to remain as the Senate President.
We have requested of him to step down. We have requested of him to do the honourable thing, to do the needful by stepping down. It is a request we are going to continue to make and any opportunity we have, we are going to insist that he must step down.”
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