President Buhari Rules Out Breaking Fast With Senate President Saraki and Others

President Muhammadu Buhari and Senator Bukola Saraki 

According to Sahara Reporters, President Muhammadu Buhari will not be dining with the members of the National Assembly following a suspected rift with Senate President Bukola Saraki and his deputy, Ike Ekweremadu of the People's Democratic Party who are currently standing trial over the alleged forgery of the senate standing order.

It would be recalled that since Buhari's return from his brief vacation in the United Kingdom on the 9th of June, he had hosted different groups, during which they broke their fast with him but the lawmakers have been absent from the list.

Those who the President had hosted so far included security chiefs, members of the Federal Executive Council, serving and retired judges, traditional rulers, Christian and Muslim clerics, leadership of the ruling All Progressives Congress, members of the business community and members of the diplomatic corps and many more.

Penultimate Wednesday, it was learnt that Buhari was scheduled to host the leaders of the two chambers of the National Assembly to Iftar. A few hours before the scheduled take-off time, however, the event was cancelled.

With the Ramadan fast ending today or tomorrow, a correspondent on Friday asked Garba Shehu, one of Buhari's media aide if a new date had been fixed for the botched dinner but the presidential spokesman admitted that Buhari would no longer be able to meet the National Assembly leaders before the end of Ramadan. He, however, said the development was not the making of anybody.

Shehu said, “You will recall that the President spent most of the days in the Ramadan month outside the country. “By the time he returned, a schedule had already been made for him on those he would be receiving daily.

“On the day fixed for the National Assembly leaders, most of them had prior engagements and so the event could not hold. It is difficult to begin to adjust the schedule when others fixed for other days have been duly informed. It is not by anybody’s making.”