We’re not rubber stamp, we have disagreed with Buhari several times - Senate President, Ahmad Lawan

Senate President Ahmad Lawan has again countered claims of leading a rubber stamp legislature.

In an interview with Daily Trust, the Senate President stated that they have disagreed with President Muhammadu Buhari on many occasions but have adopted a “behind the scenes” settlement method.

Lawan averred that it will be unfair to him, the people and the senators who elected him to choose right from the beginning to just fight in the name of independence of the legislature.

He said;

“Do you know that we have disagreed with Mr. President, the executive arm of government, many times? People don’t know, because what we have adopted is to go behind the scenes and solve our problems.

“I have also witnessed better service delivery to the people when there was cooperation and mutual respect between the two arms.

“I think I will be unfair to myself, to the people and to the senators who elected me to choose right from the beginning to just fight in the name of independence of the legislature.

“I believe in the independence of the legislature more than people think. Now they say we are a rubber stamp assembly.

“What people don’t know is that there is nothing that in the opinion of the Senate or national assembly that will jeopardise the liberty of our people or against the interest of the majority of Nigerians that we will do.

“Call us anything, if you like, not rubber stamp, call us steel stamp or whatever it is. I can tell you, today this senate has done, in the last count, 27 confirmations.

“Tell me, if we didn’t do those confirmations; tell me how governance will be carried on? There will be so much arbitrariness, maybe ministers will take advantage of where they are to supervise; there could be a lot of abuse.

“So, we shouldn’t confirm people? If we confirm it is rubber stamping.”