Obasanjo, who was president between 1999 and 2007, recommended that the ongoing anti-graft war in the judiciary be extended to the legislative arm of government.
He said the corruption in Nigeria’s parliament “stinks to high heavens”.
Obasanjo asked, “If the judiciary is being cleaned, what of the national assembly which stinks much worse than the judiciary?”
“The national assembly cabal of today is worse than any cabal that anybody may find anywhere in our national governance system at any time. Members of the national assembly pay themselves allowances for staff and offices they do not have or maintain.
“Once you are a member, you are co-opted and your mouth is stuffed with rottenness and corruption that you cannot opt out as you go home with not less than N15 million a month for a senator and N10 million a month for a member of the house of representatives. The national assembly is a den of corruption by a gang of unarmed robbers.
“Most of them conduct themselves and believe that they are not answerable to anybody. They are blatant in their misbehaviour, cavalier in their misconduct and arrogant in the misuse of parliamentary immunity as a shield against reprisals for their irresponsible acts of malfeasance and/or outright banditry.”
He wondered why the legislative arm of government had chosen not to be transparent with budget.
Obasanjo also condemned the “gang up against the whistleblower”, obviously making reference to Abdulmumin Jibrin, former chairman of the house of reps appropriation committee.
Obasanjo asked, “If the judiciary is being cleaned, what of the national assembly which stinks much worse than the judiciary?”
“The national assembly cabal of today is worse than any cabal that anybody may find anywhere in our national governance system at any time. Members of the national assembly pay themselves allowances for staff and offices they do not have or maintain.
“Once you are a member, you are co-opted and your mouth is stuffed with rottenness and corruption that you cannot opt out as you go home with not less than N15 million a month for a senator and N10 million a month for a member of the house of representatives. The national assembly is a den of corruption by a gang of unarmed robbers.
“Most of them conduct themselves and believe that they are not answerable to anybody. They are blatant in their misbehaviour, cavalier in their misconduct and arrogant in the misuse of parliamentary immunity as a shield against reprisals for their irresponsible acts of malfeasance and/or outright banditry.”
He wondered why the legislative arm of government had chosen not to be transparent with budget.
Obasanjo also condemned the “gang up against the whistleblower”, obviously making reference to Abdulmumin Jibrin, former chairman of the house of reps appropriation committee.
