Senator Ali Ndume
In a surprising turn of events, Senate President Godswill Akpabio abruptly convened an emergency closed session during Tuesday’s plenary.
This decision came about when Senator Ali Ndume, the chief whip, made a dramatic exit, raising a point of order according to rule 54 of the rule book. He brought the Senate President’s handling of affairs in the chambers, which he believed were in violation of the established rules, to the forefront.
“Mr. President there are some things we do in this chamber that are against the rules. Sir, nobody is too big to learn,” Ndume said.
Ndume’s speech, though, was abruptly terminated by Akpabio, who ruled him out of order, asserting that the matter couldn’t be reconsidered.
Senator Sunday Karimi (APC Kogi West) made an attempt to support Ndume’s viewpoint through another point of order, but Senate President Godswill Akpabio swiftly declared him out of order as well.
The Deputy President of the Senate, Jibrin Barau, promptly stood up to reference order 16, which stipulates that any Senator must introduce a substantive motion to amend or review a previous decision.
Ndume, growing increasingly frustrated, became incensed when Akpabio upheld Barau’s point of order. In response, he invoked order 54 to address what he saw as an error, and, in his anger, left the Senate chamber.
Subsequently, the remaining senators promptly gathered for a closed-door session.