Senator Chukwuka Utazi who represents Enugu North senatorial zone in this interview with newsmen in Abuja explains the current development in the National Assembly and why it should be accepted as a plus for Nigeria's democracy. Excerpts:

What is your take on the new leadership of the Senate?

Well, this is the best thing that has happened to this country because we started with a multi-party democracy where we had almost 50 political parties. Today, in the National Assembly, you are either from the APC or the PDP and that is making things better. So, parties that don't count are being withered and the two strong parties are taking the message. This is better for this country and that's what has happened in the National Assembly in the election of the presiding officers, because today we have a Senate President who is an APC member. We also have the Deputy Senate President who is PDP -this is bi-partisan politics and that is what we want because if you want to be on one side then others will be on the other side and that's a recipe for crisis, for conflict. This means from day one you start working your way into conflict. What has happened now is that members of the Senate, in their wisdom, decided to take our politics to the next level instead of the winner-takes-all approach. So today, if the APC -the governing party, brings anything to the floor of the National Assembly, people in the PDP wouldn't look at it as coming from their opponent because it is bi-partisan, the understanding is already there that people will have an open mind to look at what is coming from the APC, and if PDP senators have anything to bring, they will not also be seeing it as coming from opposition because all of us are involved. It gives room for understanding, harmony, progress and gives us a situation where we can forge ahead and spend less time in handling bills as well as resolutions that are going to come. So, this bi-partisan approach is the clincher for this country and I know that Nigerians are happy for this; it shows that Nigeria is growing democratically. But the leadership of the APC isn't looking at it that way; what you call unfolding bi-partisanship has been dismissed as a coup against the governing party. What is your take?

It is wrong. Yes, when the PDP used to be in-charge, for example in 2011, the PDP had overwhelming majority in both chambers of the National Assembly, but the present Senate is different because the APC has only ten members ahead of us and because of the strength the PDP has shown in the election, it becomes only reasonable that we have to look at issues the way things are. We won't just go and stereotype. I tell people who are thinking in that direction that PDP had overwhelming majority in 2011, 2007, 2003 and 1999, with small members from Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) Action Congress (AC) and Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) then, and even if you merged all of them, you discover that they couldn't match the PDP then. But now, the 8th Senate is different from the 7th and because of our strength, the APC doesn't have overwhelming majority and so they cannot have their way because of the way things are. In the House of Representatives, yes, the APC has overwhelming majority. What happened in the Senate could not occur there because they are in the majority. I am of the opinion that we are happy over what has happened. It shows the understanding between the APC which has 59 members and PDP which has 49. We are expecting to have communication from Mr. President on what he wants to do: is he accepting the 2015 budget? Is he going to tinker with it and present a supplementary? When are we getting the list of his ministerial nominees for confirmation? These are the things we should be talking about but they are distracting Mr. President. They should allow him to communicate with us effectively and do our job because all of us are eager to ensure that he gives the kind of leadership we want for this country.

What are your expectations from the new leadership of the Senate?

Well, my expectation is that Nigerians want things to move. Instead of complaining, they want us to start providing solutions to peoples' problems. We have problem of unemployment, what is this government going to do? What is the plan of the APC towards solving it? Which platform are they going to use to create jobs for our people so that people can be occupied properly? So, what are they doing about them? This is what we want from them. Energy is also a problem here. You asked the private sector to come in. Of course, we know the economy is managed by the private sector, throughout the world. So, if you want the private sector to lead, you give them an investment friendly environment to do business, so that they don't close shops here and go to the neighbouring countries and cause capital flights, because they are going to move to nations where there is constant power. So, this is what we expect from the APC leadership, and for us in the Senate, I am happy that our brother and friend Bukola Saraki is in the saddle and we know his antecedents in Kwara State when he was governor for 8 years and we know what he did with the NGF. He managed the forum successfully when he was in charge. That shows his acumen, that shows that he has something to offer. These are what we are looking at in the 8th Senate; somebody who has the capacity, who has managed the country before in a form, because managing the NGF showed that you were relating with all sections of the country. We want somebody with such credentials and he represents that. Last time, we had a frosty relationship at a stage in the leadership of Honourable Aminu Tambuwal and David Mark and they went their separate ways. We are expecting him to manage both the House and the Senate properly and make sure that we speak with one voice. It will assist us in the speedy passage of bills that will come to both chambers. On appropriation, we had spent so much time in the past, almost five, six months on debates on appropriation on budget before the National Assembly. Under the new Senate president, we are looking forward to seeing that the money bill will be fast so that we wouldn't waste much time.

What should your constituency look up to?

Enugu North senatorial district is lacking a lot of amenities. We don't have any road in our area. There is no major good road there. The ones we have are the ones the state government has been able to put. If you look at Enugu State, from the bottom we are the third of the states that collect the least allocation from the federation account; that means we are limited in that state. So, it is my duty here to work in tandem with other members that are here to ensure that my area is given attention. That's the only way we can feel that the federal character that is enshrined in our constitution is respected so that development isn't just restricted to one area, we want even development. We don't have roads. Talk about 9th Mile, Obollo Afor to Benue, that old single lane road where people are dying on daily basis -it is a death trap. That road needs to be dualised so that we will also be part and parcel of this country.