Senator slaps colleague over money� �I was dazed and my eyeglass fell�
Gbade Ogunwale and Sam Akpe, Abuja
Following a disagreement over the management of committee funds, Senator Isa Mohammed from Niger North District in Niger State on Thursday slapped his female colleague, Mrs. Iyabode Anisulowo.
The incident, which took place at the main entrance to the lobby of the National Assembly at about 10.50 am, left senators and many observers speechless.
Findings by our correspondents showed that the embattled Senator Mohammed has had a strained relationship with Anisulowo in the last few months over the management of votes allocated to the Senate Committee on states and local governments.
Sources also said the disagreement centred on touring advances running into millions of naira.
Investigations revealed that Anisulowo, representing Ogun West Senatorial District, had tried to mend fences with Mohammed, but met a brick wall.
The crisis of confidence, however, took a new twist on Thursday when the committee was preparing for a courtesy visit to Vice President Atiku Abubakar.
Sensing trouble from an earlier argument between the two lawmakers, Anisulowo was reported to have tactically avoided Mohammed by walking out of the lobby to join other senators for the scheduled courtesy call.
But, dissatisfied with Anisulowo�s earlier explanation, Mohammed ran after the female senator, pulled her back with the left hand, and slapped her with the right hand.
The impact of the blows sent Anisulowo staggering momentarily, as her eyeglass fell and landed on the paved floor.
It took the intervention of other senators and policemen on duty to put a halt to Mohammed�s onslaught. Anisulowo, who later narrated her ordeal to reporters, vowed to take legal action against Mohammed.
She said that considering her status and reputation, Mohammed would not be allowed to go scot-free.
Giving an insight into what degenerated into that shameful episode, Anisulowo narrated her story thus:
�I am the Chairman of the Senate Committee on States and Local Governments, while Isa Mohammed is the vice chairman.
�I sent the secretary to get my $5,000 estacode for the last trip that I made on behalf of the committee. The money had been left in the committee�s account. The balance was sent to Isa Mohammed, as we used to do in the past.
�Meanwhile, we had an appointment with the Vice- President for a courtesy visit and other members of the committee were already waiting for me outside.
�As I was about to join my colleagues, I saw Isa Mohammed and I was even glad to know that he was around for the visit to the Vice-President; so I told him that we should join other colleagues for the visit.
�He tried to raise an argument (over the money), but I pleaded with him that we should honour the Vice President�s invitation first, after which we could iron out whatever the matter was.
�Unknown to me, he was trailing me. As I made to board the vehicle, he dragged me by the arm and before I knew what was happening, he had slapped me right in the full glare of the public.
�I was dazed and my eyeglass fell. As I am talking to you now, my left eye is aching badly and the left side of my head is pounding violently. Right now, I am on the way to the hospital.
�I have reported the matter to the Deputy President of the Senate, Alhaji Ibrahim Mantu, and I have lodged a complaint with the police here at the National Assembly.
�I am going to take legal action against him and I am going to brief my lawyers. He can�t just slap me for nothing and get away with it. I am not only a senator, I am also a notable and prominent person in Nigeria. No man can slap me unjustly.�
Efforts to get Mohammed�s reaction proved abortive, as the wealthy senator avoided comments on the incident.
Apparently realising the magnitude of the problem, Mohammed, in damage control moves through his aides, initially agreed to address the press on the matter, but later changed his mind by offering to release a signed statement.
Reporters waited in vain for more than four hours for Mohammed�s statement.
As at the time our correspondent left the National Assembly complex at 5pm, the statement had not been released.
Fighting back tears, Anisulowo traced the remote cause of her disagreement with Mohammed to the last attempt by the Senate to remove the President of the Senate, Chief Adolphus Wabara in March.
�At one of our meetings then, I stated that the position of the Southwest senators was that we should not change the Senate leadership, but Isa Mohammed shouted me down before I could even finish my statement.
�Again, when we wrote our committee report on the Kwande crisis, he made sure that he destroyed the report after the committee, which I chair, had made its recommendations. I started avoiding him since then, but he was not through with me until he slapped me this morning.�
Reacting to the matter, the Senate committee chairman on Information, Senator Tawar Wada, said he would not stick out his neck, saying that the rules are only harsh on such matters if they took place on the floor of the Senate or in a committee room.
But he added that if the issue over which the senators fought had to do with an official assignment involving the Senate, the Ethics and Privileges committee would have to look into the matter.
�But if the matter had nothing to do with the business of the Senate, then the two senators are on their own floodgate,� Wada said.
When contacted the Divisional Police Officer, National Assembly, Mr. Haliru Gwandu, said, �I did not see anything, she has not made formal complaint yet.�
