The first day of the Senate’s plenary within the renovated red chamber was disrupted on Tuesday, April 30 as Senators verbally attacked themselves over the sitting arrangement.
Each chambers of the National Assembly had been formally reopened at this time for legislative duties after about two years of renovation work.
Through the renovation, lawmakers had been utilizing makeshift chambers in each wings of the National Assembly.
Leadership reported that because the Senators converged on the renovated chamber this morning, Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, started by reading the names of Senators who marked their birthdays throughout the trip. At a degree, Senator Sahabi Alhaji Ya’u (APC, Zamfara North) angrily stood up from the seat allotted to him to lodge a complaint with the Chief of the Senate, Senator Opeyemi Bamidele (APC, Ekiti Central).
His complaints to Bamidele, which began in a hushed tone, degenerated right into a shouting match between the 2 of them and consequently sparked reactions from different Senators and eventually escalated right into a rowdy session, which lasted for about half-hour
Senator Ya’u was seen pointing his finger on the Senate Leader, complaining bitterly that the new seat allotted to him on the far proper nook of the chamber was not befitting of him, being a rating Senator, who as soon as held a principal place of Deputy Minority Whip of the Senate during the ninth National Assembly.
The verbal struggle between the Senate Leader and Senator Ya’u festered additional when Senator Danjuma Goje (APC, Gombe Central) joined the fray.
Goje additionally complained to Bamidele that ranking Senators weren’t effectively positioned within the new sitting arrangement.
Nonetheless, in a troubleshooting move, the Senate President known as on the Senate Leader and the aggrieved Senators surrounding him, to approach him, which they did and ultimately paved the way in which for Akpabio to learn his welcome address after normalcy was restored.
After Akpabio’s welcome address, an emergency closed-door session was known as for by the Senate Leader, apparently to diffuse the bottled anger among Senators over the sitting arrangement.
