Senate Dismisses Motion Seeking To Penalize Ndume For ‘Kleptomaniacs’ Comments

The Senate has dismissed a motion seeking to penalize former Chief Whip, Ali Ndume, for calling lawmakers “kleptomaniacs” during an interview.

Senator Ndume, representing Borno South, had said the government of President Bola Tinubu is populated by kleptocrats.

Speaking on Arise TV, Ndume said, “The government is also populated by kleptocrats, but unfortunately that is not what the president is up to; he really meant renewed hope, but you can only do that when you have people around you that are on the same type of thinking.”

Senator Fasuyi Cyril, representing Ekiti North, raised a point of order on Wednesday, urging the Senate to take action against Ndume for his remarks.

However, when Senate President Godswill Akpabio put the motion to a voice vote, the proposal to refer the matter to the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges, and Public Petitions was unanimously rejected.

Following the rejection, the Senate entered an executive session.

Naturenex reports that this development follows the replacement of Ndume with Tahir Munguno as Chief Whip.

The Senate unanimously resolved to effect the replacement after reading a complaint from the All Progressive Congress (APC) National Headquarters regarding Ndume’s conduct, presented by Senate President Akpabio.

Senator Ndume, absent from the session, has been vocal about his criticisms of President Bola Tinubu’s economic policies, highlighting issues such as economic hardship, food scarcity, and related security crises.

In addition to losing his position as Chief Whip, Ndume was also removed as Vice Chairman of the Senate Committee on Appropriations. He has been reassigned to chair the Senate Committee on Tourism.