The Senate, on Thursday, passed a vote of confidence in its President, Godswill Akpabio.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that this followed a Point of Order raised by Sen. Yahaya Abdullahi (PDP-Kebbi) during plenary while reacting to the purported impeachment move against Akpabio.
While raising the matter under personal explanation, Abdullahi drew the attention of the upper legislative chamber to a publication on the purported impeachment of the senate president.
“It was reported that senators from the northern part of the country were plotting to impeach the leadership of the senate led by Akpabio.
“I am a senior member of the Northern Senators’ Forum and I can assure you that there is no attempt by any caucus among the northern senators to bring discord or any attempt to challenge the unity of what you are doing in the senate.
“My privilege has been breached. Anybody trying to bring division across any regional line is undermining the progress of our democracy and undermining the capacity of this institution to deliver.
“Therefore, we must rise and get united under the leadership to ensure that this kind of discourse is completely negated so that the kind of unity that we have forged in the last 18 months can be sustained and fully accomplished.
“I rise with you in the sense of your master heart and I’m sure all of my colleagues also feel the same for us to be characterised as either promoting, supporting or allowing anybody to bring the leadership of this institution down.
“I have never in my life associated with anybody in order to bring or to divide any institution along ethnic or religious lines,” he said.
The senator attributed the development to what he called the work of some enemies, saying it should be resisted.
“All of us must stand united behind the senate leadership to make sure that this institution is preserved,” Abdullahi added.
Supporting the motion, Sen. Abdul Ningi (PDP-Bauchi) called for the enforcement of a vote of confidence in the senate president and the entire leadership of the National Assembly.
“I’m very positive that this is the way to go about it,” Ningi stated.
Reacting, Akpabio assured the senators that the bond existing between them and the senate would continue.
“No person, no social media will come here to break that bond. I thank you for this and we are very humbled.
“We are confident in this place and in the coming months and in the coming years, we will justify the confidence that you have placed in us,” he noted.