The Senate has challenged former President Olusegun Obasanjo to name the “criminals and rogues'' alleged to be members of the National Assembly.
Senate spokesman Enyinnaya Abaribe announced the Senate's position at a news conference on Wednesday in Abuja.
The reaction followed newspaper reports credited to the former President? alleging that there were rogues and criminals in the National Assembly.
Abaribe said the Senate would not allow itself to be dragged into any exchange with the former President.
He said that Obasanjo would be doing a great service to the nation by making known the identities of those lawmakers he referred to as dubious characters.
?“The National Assembly has great respect for the person of the former president of Nigeria, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo and the National Assembly, can never engage in any talkback to the president.
“We actually feel that the former president would help the National Assembly and? Nigeria in the new spirit of transparency and openness to assist the assembly by naming those that he knows as either rogues or criminals,’’ he said.
The Senate commended Obasanjo for his concern and contributions to the development of the country.
It urged well meaning Nigerians to assist the National Assembly with relevant information to assist it in promoting transparency and openness in the activities of government.
“This would help us to be able to sanitise the polity and we sincerely thank him (OBJ) for his role in Nigeria as someone who cares very deeply about the Nigerian state and how it is at the moment.
“We also urge other Nigerians who are concerned about Nigeria to also in the spirit of transparency let us know whatever information that they have so that we can use it to check ourselves to make Nigeria a better place,’’ Abaribe said.
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