…Akpabio Overrules Rejection After Second Vote
A mild drama unfolded in the Senate on Wednesday as lawmakers initially rejected a bid by the Senate leadership to admit governors and senior government officials into the chamber to observe proceedings on the State Police Bill.
The visitors included Governors Dapo Abiodun (Ogun), Lucky Aiyedatiwa (Ondo), and Uba Sani (Kaduna), as well as the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, and the President’s Chief of Staff, Femi Gbajabiamila.
Also in the delegation were the Attorneys-General and Commissioners for Justice of Ondo, Anambra and Akwa Ibom states.
The visitors had sought access to the chamber to observe deliberations and voting on the Constitution Alteration Bill seeking to establish state police across the federation.
At the commencement of proceedings, Senate President Godswill Akpabio appealed to senators to allow what he described as “strangers” into the chamber.
Following the appeal, Senate Leader, Opeyemi Bamidele moved a motion invoking Order 1(b) of the Senate Standing Rules, which permits non-members to be admitted into the chamber under special circumstances.
However, when the motion was put to a voice vote, senators overwhelmingly rejected it.
The development appeared to catch the Senate leadership off guard, prompting Akpabio to make a fresh appeal to his colleagues to accommodate the visitors.
He subsequently directed Bamidele to reintroduce the motion. The renewed request was seconded by Deputy Senate President Barau Jibrin.
When the motion was again subjected to a voice vote, Akpabio called only for the “Ayes”, which were noticeably fewer than the senators present in the chamber.
As dissenting voices grew louder, the Senate President did not call for the “Nays”, which appeared to be in the majority.
Instead, he swiftly ruled in favour of the motion and brought down the gavel.
The decision paved the way for the governors, ministers and other officials waiting outside the chamber to gain entry and observe the proceedings on the landmark State Police Bill.
The incident briefly highlighted the growing animosity between some governors and the senators representing their states.
Some of the senators are bitter that their governors had used their domineering influence in the politics of their states to deny them re-election tickets of their political parties for the 2027 general election.
