Senator Ali Ndume, a former Chief Whip of the Senate, has apologized to the leadership of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) for not consulting the party before publicly accusing President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration of maladministration.
Ndume, who represents Borno South in the National Assembly, reiterated that he stands by his remarks, asserting that his actions were motivated by patriotism.
“Yesterday I was invited by the party, and here I am to discuss family matters regarding recent events. The national chairman is not just a chairman to me but a father,” Ndume said.
He acknowledged his mistake in not consulting the party before making public statements. “I accepted the mistake of not talking to the party as a final point and promised that all my observations as a senior member should have ended with the party,” he added. “Whatever I said or did was out of patriotism, and while my words may have been strong, they were true. However, I should have spoken to the party first.”
Following a letter from the APC, Ndume was removed and replaced by Senator Mohammed Monguno. The letter, signed by APC National Chairman Abdullahi Ganduje and National Secretary Senator Ajibola Basiru, directed the upper chamber to sanction Ndume for failing to use party channels to express his grievances before going public.
In an interview with BBC Hausa Service, Ndume had alleged that President Bola Tinubu was being influenced by forces within the Presidential Villa, who were feeding him lies and isolating him from honest Nigerians.
Ndume’s criticism resulted in his removal from his position as a principal officer in the National Assembly and as a committee chairman.
