By Olusegun Lawrence No amount of intimidation and blackmail will stop the 8th Senate from discharging its constitutional duties, Senate President Bukola Saraki, said on Tuesday.
Saraki made the vow while reacting to a Point of Order raised by Senator Dino Melaye on the publication in Thisday newspapers on REMITA, the e-payment and e-collection software used in the implementation of the Singe Treasury Account (TSA).
According to the Senate President, “It is time the committees are inaugurated so that they can start work immediately because this matter came up last week and we have set up three committees to take a look at the issue.
“The fact will come out and everybody will have opportunity before that committee to state the fact.
“We have a responsibility here to ensure that there are no leakages in government funds and if there are we will call the attention of the public and do whatever it takes and there is no amount of intimidation that will stop us.”
Raising the Point of Order, Melaye had posited that the writer raised the abnormality by saying that the Senate was against the implementation of the TSA, which he said was false.
“We will not stop carrying out our legislative duties for fear of being blackmailed,” a visibly enraged Melaye said.
He also insisted that the contract letter issued by the CBN states that the agent, Systemspec will receive 1% commission on the money remitted contrary to claims by the company that it is only .5%.
“I have a letter here that I am going to lay with this paper, written by the Director Banking and Payment of CBN to the Managing Director of Systemspec, where the CBN categorically stated that they should remit the one per cent that they collected,” Melaye said.
