WHAT could have been a major brawl between two senators was averted, on
Wednesday, as the Senate had a heated debate over observations raised by
President Goodluck Jonathan on the State of the Nation Address Bill 2013, which
seeks to compel him to address a joint sitting of the National Assembly on the
state of the nation.
Majority of the lawmakers argued that the president’s observations amounted
to a veto of the bill, while some others advised that it should be reviewed to
reflect observations of the president.
Confusion, however, started when Senator Ita Enang drew the attention of his
colleagues to the contradictions between the Senate Rule and the 1999
Constitution (as amended) in respect of the bill that had been processed by the
National Assembly Conference Committee.
Quoting relevant sections in the constitution and the Senate rules, Enang,
among others, argued that the president had no authority to propose an
amendment to the bill, adding that what was required of him was to either give
or withhold his assent to the bill.
He also wanted the interpretation of the Supreme Court on whether the
president could make an amendment to a bill already passed by the National
Assembly or not, urging the Senate to set a legislative precedent by not
acceding to the president’s request for an amendment to bill.
However, Senator Smart Adeyemi was of the opinion that President Jonathan
was not against the bill, as he said “the president’s amendment proposal on
this is not out of place, because, as it can be deduced from the content of the
letter, he is not in any way against the bill.
Senator Ganiyu Solomon said the president’s letter called to question the
sense of judgment of 469 members of the National Assembly, adding that the
letter ran contrary to the spirit of Section 87 of the Constitution.
But Senator Andy Uba informed his colleagues that the president was not
against the bill but merely offered suggestions on how to improve it to deepen
democratic practices in the country.
Senator Solomon Ewuga, in his contribution, said the president could not
delegate the responsibility of addressing the nation to the vice president,
adding that he was both an executive and ceremonial president who was,
therefore, required to deliver the address in a ceremony at a particular day of
the year.
At the peak of the confusion, Senate President, David Mark, told his
colleagues that “as it is today, we have boxed ourselves to a corner. We have
this rule and, as Ita Enang clearly pointed out, any act that is against the
Constitution, to the extent that it is against the Constitution, is null and
void. But it is not as simple and straightforward as that, because we now have
a standing rule.”
He also ruled out the possibility of overriding the amendment as proposed by
some lawmakers, as he said he was of the conviction that the president did not
said he was not going to give his assent to the bill.
“Even if we have to override, it cannot be today because overriding would
not be by mouth votes. My understanding of Enang’s conclusion was for us to get
interpretation from Supreme Court, but how to go about it is not clear to me,”
he said.
While the debate lingered, Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, suggested
that the debate on the bill be adjourned to allow for consultation with members
of the House of Representatives.
Ruling on the matter, the Senate President put forward a question on whether
or not the debate should be adjourned, with the response further confirming a
sharp division among lawmakers.
Senator Mark withheld his ruling on the matter and the Senate subsequently
broke into a rowdy 15-minute break, during which Senators Kabir Marafa and
Paulinus Nwagwu were seen attempting a fight.
It took the intervention of Senator Ahmed Lawan and the Sergeants-At-Arms to
stop Marafa, who had attempted to throw a punch at Nwagwu.
Disappointed by the situation, Mark condemned the unparliamentary conduct
and used the opportunity to abruptly suspend the debate and adjourned sitting.
“There is no need for temper to rise. We are democrats and we should behave
as such. In any case, for the first time in 14 years, I have seen an effort to
pull out boxing gloves but it is not necessary. We can do all the talking, but
we will not resort to boxing. I suggest that we suspend debate on this subject
matter.”
However, Senate’s spokesperson, Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe, in his address to
the press, said the fight between Senators Marafa and Nwagwu was caused by an
earlier motion by Senator Bashir Garba Lado, aimed at stopping Zamfara State
governor, Abdulaziz Yari, from arming vigilance groups in the state.
Abaribe claimed that Marafa accused Lado of meddling in the affairs of
Zamfara State, adding that the remark prompted a response from Nwagwu, thus
provoking the Zamfara lawmaker to the point of attempting physical showdown
with his colleague.
