Rowdy Senate blocks motion to honour & Immortalize June 12 hero & former INEC chairman Professor Humphrey Nwosu
There was drama on Wednesday as the Senate rejected a proposed motion to immortalise the late Chairman of the defunct National Electoral Commission (NEC), Professor Humphrey Nwosu.
Nwosu was the chairman of the NEC that conducted the June 12, 1993 presidential election won by the late Chief Moshood Abiola annulled by the military regime led by Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida (IBB).
Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe (APGA – Abia South, had raised a point of order to bring a motion on the late Nwosu and the June 12, 2023 presidential election.
After Abaribe, who represents Abia South, gave the synopsis of the motion, the Deputy Senate President, Senator Jibrin Barau, who presided over the plenary, put the question on whether Abaribe should proceed with the motion or not and the senators voted against it.
Attempt by Abaribe to raise another point of order to present the motion again was blocked by the Senate Leader, Opeyemi Bamidele, through a point of order, saying it was wrong to bring up an issue that had been ruled upon.
The Deputy Senate President upheld the point of order raised by the Senate Leader, and the development drew the anger of Abaribe.
Following the development, a former Senate Leader, Senator Yahaya Abdullahi, cautioned Barau who was presiding against trying to be dictatorial in his approach to issues.
Abdullahi said: “This particular kind of thing can aim to deny members an opportunity to raise points of order and also to express personal opinions.
“We are trying to send a bad precedent if your decision is upheld. Personal matters will no longer be raised under order 10 and we thereby truncate the independence of senators.
“This is because we will not allow them to interject in the Senate to raise issues that are very essential and fundamental to them and their constituencies.
“Therefore, I think with all due respect the position that is advocated by our distinguished leader is not correct.”
Barau then ruled that Senator Abaribe could bring up the matter through a proper motion by liaising with the Committee on Rules and Business in the next legislative day.
However, Abaribe disagreed with the ruling of the Deputy Senate President and insisted that senators are allowed to raise point of order at any point during plenary.
He said: “The Senate shall by resolution regulate its procedure. So even if the Senate Leader says that it doesn’t follow by the fact that a senator wants to make a personal explanation you must give that senator a chance to make that personal explanation.
“We are not under a dictatorship Mr. President. It’s at your discretion Mr. President because if at your discretion you say we can’t talk, so be it.”
In his response, Barau told Abaribe that he should have discussed with him first before bringing up a controversial issue.
But Abaribe replied, saying, “Mr. President, I don’t know what is controversial for immortalising Humphrey Nwosu and June 12th. What is controversial there?”
The Senator had in his motion, proposed the renaming of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) headquarters in Abuja after the late Nwosu among other prayers.
