It’s Government Programme, not President’s, We Are Part of Govt – N’Assembly
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“There is no exclusivity in terms of any programme that is to be implemented, except the National Assembly is not part of the government.
“Government, as defined by the 1999 Constitution, has three components: legislative powers (are contained in) Section 4, executive powers (in) Section 5 and the judicial powers (in) Section 6.
“It is the totality that constitutes government; so when you are saying the government is executing a programme, it is not President Muhammadu Buhari that is doing the programme, it is the government of the people.
“The implementation, appropriation and execution all rolled into one. There is no dichotomy as such as encroaching on the powers of the President. Assuming the National Assembly is opposed to the programme, we could have not approved it.
“When journalists also raised issues about the humanitarian social register and the National Assembly intervened, there is now more transparency in it.
“Our people will also ask questions, ‘These 1, 000 people, how were they employed?’ ‘Who set up the selection committee?’ ‘What are the modalities for recruitment?’ ‘What are the minimum requirements for recruitment?”
“It cannot be left to the whims of a person or a branch of government. It has to be the totality of the government.”
Ayooluwa Joshua