A tensed argument between the Senate president, Godswill Akpabio and his predecessor, Ahmed Lawan forced the house into closed-door session on Thursday.
A change in Senate’s official sitting time was what cause the dispute between the duo
The disagreement started following a motion to amend the sitting time from 10 am to 11 am.
In earnest, the motion to alter the legal time as provided by the rule of the senate was brought forward by Senate Leader, Opeyemi Bamidele, as is traditional for a senator occupying his position to do.
Soon after Bamidele tabled his proposal for amendment, Lawan was quick to speak and opposed the proposal describing it as illogical.
According to him, the reason adduced by the senate leader that the sitting time should be changed to conform with the time the House of Representatives sits at 11 am was “unscientific” and “unconvincing”.
“The explanation that the change was to enable the Senate to synchronise its sitting time with that of the House of Representatives is not saleable to senators,” Lawan stated.
According to Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele (Ekiti Central), the adjustment was necessary to synchronize the Senate’s schedule with that of the House of Representatives. Bamidele moved the motion during Thursday’s plenary session.
However, Lawan opposed the motion, arguing that the proposed change lacked a convincing or “scientific” basis.
According to Lawan, lawmakers are more energetic and alert during the early part of the day, and so moving forward the sitting time to 11am to accommodate Akpabio’s inability to observe the simple rule of the senate was in the least troubling.
He said by the time the senate convenes for the day’s legislative work, they would have been tired two hours in.
He stressed that Akpabio’s proposal fell flat in the face of reason and practicality as if observed, would stifle works of the committees that are supposed to seat by 3pm, a time when committees should be actively working.
Akpabio pushed back the argument blaming Lawan for the senate’s habitual late sitting as what has now become a tradition of the 10th Senate was inherited from Lawan’s 9th Senate.
A visibly angry Lawan fought back and refuted the claim, declaring, “No, that is not correct!”
Surprisingly, Akpabio added that the senate can start its sitting at 11am and terminate at 1pm as it does not necessarily mean sitting beyond 3pm.
It turned into a back and forth argument forcing the bewildered senate leader to intervene with a fresh explanation that the shift from 10am to 11am was due to multiple engagements, which he said include oversight duties and committee assignments.
He said the engagements often keep the lawmakers working late into the night, making a 10am resumption challenging.
Following the development, Akpabio then called for an closed-door session to address the issues privately to calm the rising tension.
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