Drama as senators fight over seats in renovated chamber

The renovated chamber of the Senate was on Tuesday, April 30, 2024, thrown into a rowdy session after senators exchanged words over sitting arrangement.

Both chambers of the National Assembly were formally reopened on Tuesday after about two years of renovation.

During the renovation, lawmakers were using makeshift chambers in both wings of the National Assembly.

The renovation was completed before the lawmakers’ 40-day recess.

However, trouble started on Tuesday when Senate President Godswill Akpabio started reading the names of senators who marked their birthdays during the vacation.

Senator Sahabi Ya’u (APC, Zamfara North) thereafter angrily stood up from the seat allocated to him to lodge a complaint with Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele.

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His complaints to Bamidele, which started in a hushed tone, degenerated into a shouting match between the two of them and consequently sparked reactions from other senators.

The reactions eventually escalated into a rowdy session which lasted for about 30 minutes.

Ya’u was seen pointing his finger at Bamidele, complaining that the new seat allocated to him at the far right corner of the chamber was not befitting of him, being a ranking senator, who once held a principal position of Deputy Minority Whip of the Senate at the 9th National Assembly.

The verbal war between the Senate Leader and Ya’u aggravated further when Senator Danjuma Goje (APC, Gombe Central) joined the argument.

Goje also complained to Bamidele that ranking senators were not well positioned in the new sitting arrangement.

Akpabio later called on Bamidele and other aggrieved lawmakers surrounding him to approach him, which they did and eventually paved way for the Senate President to read his welcome address after normalcy was restored.

The Star