A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), and former Minority Leader in the House of Representatives, Farouq Aliyu, says President Muhammadu Buhari is not bound to honour an invitation by the National Assembly over the security situation in the country.
Speaking during an interview on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Wednesday in Abuja, Aliyu said the security chiefs should rather appear before the lawmakers to address Nigerians on the steps taken to tackle the numerous challenges.
“If I were to advise Mr President, I will tell Mr President not to go. He should probably allow the service chiefs to go and explain because there are certain details that should probably be explained in the camera,” he said.
“As a former Minority leader in the House, I don’t think the President should appear. Not at this time at the moment where things are so difficult, the country is going through challenges. Is the President going to appear there to tell the National Assembly the strategies being taken by the government?
“Is he going there for an interactive session? Not even the Speaker can assure the President or his party that Mr President cannot or may not be embarrassed.”
Justifying his demand for Buhari not to address the federal lawmakers on the security situation, the former minority leader in the House said the President is not an orator.
The APC chieftain believes that it is not in the President’s style to talk, adding that there are people blessed with oratory skills in the country.
“There are so many things that the President may divulge and people will say, ‘look, why did he even go? He shouldn’t have gone if he has the interest of the people at heart.
“Mr President, Buhari is not an orator. And that’s his gift. There are orators, people who can go and talk and talk. People are different,” he added.
Aliyu’s remark comes a week after the House of Representatives passed a resolution to invite President Buhari to brief the House on the true state of the security situation in the country.
The decision to summon President Buhari was taken during plenary on December 1 when the House considered a motion moved by members from Borno State on the recent massacre of 43 rice farmers in the state by Boko Haram insurgents.
