Aggrieved All Progressives Congress senators on Wednesday protested the emergence of Senators Bukola Saraki and Ike Ekweremmadu as Senate President and Deputy respectively.
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the senators raised objections on the election at a plenary session of the Senate in Abuja.
NAN recalls that 57 out of 108 senators on Tuesday nominated and endorsed Saraki, the APC senator for Kwara Central Senatorial District and Ekweremmadu, representing Enugu West Senatorial District.
Seantor Kabir Marafa, representing Zamfara Central Senatorial District on the platform of the APC, raised a “point of order” over the election at the plenary.
Marafa explained that 51 senators, including him, were waiting to attend a meeting called by President Muhammadu Buhari when Saraki was returned unopposed as the Senate President and Ekweremadu as Deputy Senate President.
Citing order 43 of the Senate, Marafa said as a member of the 7th Assembly, he had no recollection that Senate’s Standing on the order had been amended.
Corroborating, Senator Barnabas Gemade, (APC Benue North-East), said the conduct of the election in the absence of the senators breached their constitutional privilege.
Gemade said the elections if not revisited would cause disunity in the Senate, which had enjoyed unity in the past.
He said: “It behooves you to ensure that equal participation must be given to all concerned.
“For this reason, may I conclude that your ruling by the wave of hand on the issue of privilege raised earlier was too casual.”
The Senate president, however, ruled that the senators were out of order.
Also speaking, Senator Danjuma Goje (PDP Gombe Central) said the senators were constitutionally supposed to be at the National Assembly for the inauguration.
“I want to put it on record that anybody who decided to go for whatever meeting is on his own,” Goje said.
The aggrieved senators, thereafter, walked out of the hallowed chambers in protest.
Meanwhile, Ekerenmadu, in a motion moved on the floor of the Senate, urged that a letter be sent to Buhari informing him of the election of presiding officers of the Senate.
He also urged that a congratulatory message be sent to the speaker and deputy speaker of the House of Representatives.
He also moved that “a message be sent to the African Union, Commonwealth Parliament, Inter-Parliamentary Union, ECOWAS Parliament, Pan-African Parliament and Association of Senate, Shoora and Equivalent Council in Africa and the Arab World.
“There is need to officially inform the bodies that a quorum of the Senate of the 8th National Assembly has assembled and ready to receive any communication.”
Earlier, 28 senators, including Senator Ahmed Lawan, APC’s choice for senate presidency; Senator George Akume, his running mate; and Gemade, were sworn in on Wednesday.
This brought the number of sworn in senators to 104 as the Senate went into a closed door session but no explanation was given for the meeting.
The Senate, thereafter, adjourned sitting till June 23.
NAN.