Senator Danjuma Goje of Gombe State, on Tuesday scolded the Senate President Godswill Akpabio for what he described as “Unparliamentary Act.”
The Senate was already in session when the Senate President entered and took over the seat from the Deputy Senate President, Jibrin Barau who was presiding.
Akpabio,immediately after taking his seat, summoned the Senate Leaders, Opeyemi Bamidele and others to approach the Chair for a meeting.
Disturbed by Akpabio’s action, Goje rose and raised Order 55 (12) (a), which states that “interaction is not allowed” during plenary.
He said: “Interaction is not allowed except to move the business that we have been called upon to do.Mr. Senate President what you are doing is Unparliamentary. You are disturbing the business of the Senate. You cannot be holding a separate meeting when the Senate is in session.”
Akpabio summoned Goje to approach the Chair, but he refused saying he cannot be part of what is illegal and Unparliamentary.
He said:“What I’m trying to say, Mr. President, is that what is happening now is unparliamentary. What you are doing here is Unparliamentary. You should have done this outside. When we come to the Parliament, we do parliamentary business.
“I want you to listen to this. What we are doing here, everything is at standstill now. We are not doing business”.
Akpabio replied and said “noted”.Goje fired back and said “noted but not sustained”?
Senator Goje insisted that the senators holding meeting with the Senate President should leave there so that the Senate will move on.
Akpabio agreed that he was going to ask them to move on, but offered Goje an olive branch to join the meeting, which Goje turned down flat.
Akpabio told Goje that “everybody that you see here was invited by the chair for a brief discussion in continuation of today’s sitting and in line with the order you have just read, whether or not we should proceed in view of a very urgent assignment at the villa by one o’clock.
“Please, approach the chair so you can also be part of it”.
Senator said “I don’t want to be part of it. I’m opposed to this one. I will not come. It’s unparliamentary. It’s wrong”.