Fatshimetrie recently published an article damning the senators for having become, according to Atiku, mere puppets in the hands of Tinubu.
This criticism follows the recent removal of Borno South Senator Ali Ndume from his position as Senate Chief Whip for criticizing the policies of the Tinubu government.
Ndume was also removed as Deputy Chairman of the Appropriations Committee and replaced in both positions by another Borno State senator, Senator Mohammed Monguno.
The move followed a letter addressed to the Senate President by the National Labor Committee (NWC) led by Abdullahi Ganduje of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
In his statement on Thursday evening, Atiku expressed fear for Nigeria’s democracy if active involvement in what he described as collusions between the National Assembly and the current Tinubu administration continues.
He also accused Tinubu of exhibiting despotic tendencies.
“Atiku said”: “This emerging reality must end. The health of our democracy is compromised by this unholy alliance between the executive and the legislature and heralds a dictatorship that will worsen the condition of the people.
“In the evolution of systems of government, a major concern of thinkers was a governmental framework that would reduce the despotism of the executive.
“It has been thought, and rightly so, that a participatory approach to governance, such that the government derives its legitimacy from the people, will best serve the interests of the masses.
“Thus, to ensure that the executive does not overstep the bounds in the application of its powers, the legislative branch was designed as a means of protecting the people against the authoritarian tendencies of the holders of state power.
“Regretting, however, that democracy in Nigeria, under the current administration of President Bola Tinubu, has become an antithesis of this general principle of democracy as the primary protection of the people against executive excesses.
“This ugly trend is manifested by the constant posture of our National Assembly, especially the Senate, to take an opposite direction from its primary function and become a puppet in the hands of the President.
“It is deplorable that every time members of the Senate stand up on the floor of the red chamber to perform their statutory duty of calling the executive to order, they are immediately reprimanded for doing so.
“When Senator Abdul Ningi drew national attention to the incident of fiscal inflation in the 2024 Finance Bill, instead of calling for a thorough investigation into the observation, the Senate’s reaction was to impose a suspension.”
This harsh criticism of Atiku raises fundamental questions about the independence of the legislature and highlights the challenges facing democracy in NigeriaIt calls for a deep reflection on the role and responsibility of senators as representatives of the people and on the need to preserve the checks and balances essential to the proper functioning of the democratic system.