Police, DSS guilty if Buhari can’t present budget —National Assembly

The National Assembly management and leadership have explained that they invited the Police and the Department of State Services to secure the complex because of the impending presentation of the 2019 Appropriation Bill.

President Muhammadu Buhari is due to present the bill to the joint assembly on Wednesday.

The leadership is led by Senate President Bukola Saraki and Speaker of the House of Representatives Yakubu Dogara; while the management is led by Clerk to the National Assembly Mohammed Sani-Omolori.

In a statement issued by Mr Sani-Omolori on Tuesday shortly after an emergency meeting with National Assembly leadership, the police and DSS were directed to ensure adequate security within the National Assembly premises from Tuesday morning “to enable members and staff come in and perform their legitimate duties without any hindrance.”

Sani-Omolori added in the statement that the issues raised by the workers have been attended to.

“Both chambers must hold their normal plenary tomorrow (Tuesday) morning to prepare the ground for the visit of President Muhammadu Buhari on Wednesday, December 19, 2018 to present the budget proposal to the joint sitting of the Senate and the House of Representatives.

“We have therefore mandated the security agencies to perform their duty of maintaining law and order in the National Assembly Complex and its surrounding.

“They must enforce the laws which allow the striking workers to down tools if they choose to and also the ones which restrain them from disturbing those who choose to work or stop parliamentarians from entering the chambers or their offices to do the work for which they were elected.

“If President Buhari is unable to present the budget proposal on Wednesday as scheduled Nigerians should hold the security agencies responsible for failing in the performance of their duties,” the statement read.