Senate President Godswill Akpabio, on Saturday, challenged politicians who publicly oppose godfatherism but practice it in private.
He argued that credibility in the fight against the phenomenon must be backed by personal examples.
Akpabio stated this at the launch of a book written by former Senator Effiong Bob, “The Burdens of Legislators in Nigeria”, at the Nigerian Air Force Conference Centre, Kado, Abuja.
Former Senate President, Senator David Mark, was the chairman of the occasion.
Akpabio in his reaction to discussions on godfatherism during the event, pointed to what he described as contradictions in the stance of some political actors.
He said, “And then, of course, members of the House of Assembly also include the son of a distinguished senator. So when I heard that he was against godfatherism, I said, okay.
“Since you’re against godfatherism, maybe you’ll withdraw your son from the House of Assembly as a starting point of showing that you’re against godfatherism.”
The Senate President argued that it is inconsistent to condemn godfatherism while allegedly benefiting from it.
“You cannot be saying something on the left-hand side and practising it on the right. Otherwise, that will amount to approbating and reprobating,” he stated.
But Akpabio acknowledged that the lawmaker in question was performing well in the legislature.
“But let the boy remain. He’s even doing his second term in the House. He’s on his second term, and he’s one of the leaders of the House of Assembly in himself,” he said.
