Former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Ghali Umar
Na’Abba will on Monday, July 6 chair the first detailed book on National
Assembly entitled; “Nigeria Fourth Republic National Assembly.” The
400-page book was
published in the United Kingdom.
The event which holds at Shehu Musa Yar’Adua Centre is expected to attract
virtually all the past and present presiding officers of the National
Assembly. President of the Senate, Senator Bukola Saraki will be the
Special Guest.
The book the first of its kind since the inception of the current National
Assembly in 1999 is a rich and authoritative reference material on the
federal parliament.
Written by Austin Uganwa, a Doctorate Degree holder in Political
Communication; renowned journalist and prolific writer, former chairman of
the House Press Corps and two-time Special Adviser in the office of the
Deputy Speaker, House of Representatives; the book provides uncommon
insights into the eras of the various presiding officers of the National
Assembly from 1999 to 2007.
A statement made available to journalists in Abuja by the author, Dr.
Uganwa contained that the book is an extensive exposition of the politics,
challenges, debilitating drama, nights of long knives, metaphoric banana
peels and consensus building approach that attended the two chambers of
the National Assembly at the wake of the Fourth Republic until 2007.
The author notes: “the book evaluates in the most downright fashion mass
media coverage of the National Assembly based on the Social Responsibility
press model that guides media function in democracy. It puts in context
and perspective the face-offs that for the first four years defined the
relationship between the House and the Presidency”.
According to him, the collapse of tenures of Salisu Buhari; Evan Enwerem;
Chuba Okadigbo; Adolphus Wabara and Patricia Etteh and the death knell of
Olusegun Obasanjo’s third term project are extensively captured in the
book
Some of the dignitaries expected at the public presentation of the book
include; former Vice President Atiku Abubakar; all the present and past
presiding officers and other principal officers of the National Assembly;
Ghanaian, United Kingdom, Canadian High Commissioners to Nigeria and
United States and Chinese Ambassadors to the country and captains of
Industry