Tag: Godswill Akpabio

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Attempted Coup: Senate approves troops deployment to Benin Republic

The Senate has approved President Bola Tinubu’s request to deploy Nigerian troops to the Republic of Benin in support of efforts to restore peace and stability following last weekend’s attempted coup.

Senate President Godswill Akpabio announced this on Tuesday during plenary after lawmakers considered the request in the Committee of the Whole in line with section 5, Part 11 of the Constitution.

The Senators unanimously voted in favour of the deployment, giving legislative backing for the regional security intervention.

Akpabio described the decision as a step in the right direction, noting that instability in any neighboring state poses a threat to the entire region.

“An injury to one is an injury to all,” the lawmaker said.

He underscored that it is Nigeria’s responsibility to support its Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) partner.

The Senate’s consent letter will be transmitted to President Tinubu immediately.

Tinubu had written to the Senate, seeking their approval for the deployment of troops to the Benin Republic. He said that Nigeria has a historical responsibility to support Benin under the existing Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) security frameworks.

According to the President, the crisis demands “urgent external intervention” to help restore stability and prevent further breakdown of order.

Benin Republic’s attempted coup occurred on Sunday, when some military personnel announced the removal of President Patrice Talon. (Channels)

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Tinubu sends list of three ambassadorial nominees to Senate for confirmation

President Bola Tinubu has forwarded the names of three non-career ambassadorial nominees to the Senate for confirmation.

The nominees are Kayode Aare (Ogun State), Aminu Dalhatu (Jigawa State), and Ayodele Oke (Oyo State).

The letter was read during plenary by the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio.

Akpabio has, therefore, directed the Senate Committee on Foreign Affairs to review the nominations and report back to the chamber within one week.

This is the first list of ambassadorial nominees sent to the Senate by Tinubu since he became the President on May 29, 2023.

There had been calls on the President to appoint ambassadors and high commissioners for foreign missions.

Concerns over the non-appointment of ambassors were reignited in the wake of the threat by

A former Nigerian External Affairs Minister, Bolaji Akinyemi, had argued that, despite internet access to information, diplomacy still required personal ambassadorial contact.

“I believe credible appointments should be made to the vacant ambassadorial posts. We need to fill them,” Akinyemi said during an interview on Channels Television’s Politics Today in September. (Channels)

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Senate confirms Amupitan as INEC chairman

The Senate has confirmed Professor Joash Amupitan as the new Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission.

The Red Chamber confirmed Amupitan after a voice vote conducted by Senate President Godswill Akpabio and after undergoing screening and answering questions posed by the lawmakers.

Amupitan had earlier arrived at the National Assembly complex earlier, exchanged pleasantries with Senators.

He was accompanied to the chamber by the Governor of Kogi State, Ahmed Ododo, and other dignitaries.

At about 12:50 p.m., the nominee was ushered into the Senate chamber by the Presidential Adviser on National Assembly Matters (Senate), Senator Abubakar Lado, and was already seated ahead of the commencement of the exercise.

Amupitan was allowed into the hallowed chamber after the Senate Leader, Senator Opeyemi Bamidele (APC, Ekiti Central), moved that Order 12 be set aside to allow visitors into the chamber, and he was seconded by the Senate Minority Leader, Senator Abba Moro (PDP, Benue South).

Senate President Godswill Akpabio welcomed Amupitan, his family members, and well-wishers to the Red Chamber, commending them for their presence.

Before introducing himself to the Senators for the question and answer session to take off, Akpabio disclosed to his colleagues that the nominee had been cleared by the office of the National Security Adviser after vetting.

According to Akpabio, the office of the Department of State Services had also cleared him.

The Senate President also said that the Office of the Inspector-General of Police, having done a fingerprint search on him, cleared him and said that he had no criminal records with the police.

The screening exercise commenced at about 12:55 p.m. following Akpabio’s opening remarks, during which he outlined the procedures to be followed by the lawmakers in considering the nominee’s credentials.

The screening session focused on Amupitan’s vision for credible elections, his plans for institutional reforms within INEC, and measures to deepen the use of technology in Nigeria’s electoral process.

Following his confirmation by the Senate, Amupitan will oversee preparations for upcoming off-cycle governorship elections and lay the groundwork for the 2027 general elections.

PUNCH Online earlier reported that President Bola Tinubu had nominated Amupitan, a Professor of Law from the University of Jos, to succeed Prof. Mahmood Yakubu. (Punch)

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At 65, Nigeria on the right track — Akpabio

President of the Senate, Senator Godswill Akpabio, has declared that Nigeria is moving in the right direction as President Bola Tinubu’s reforms are beginning to yield positive results.

The former Akwa Ibom State governor also dismissed claims that Nigeria is “finished” or irredeemable, insisting the country is on the right track under Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.

Akpabio made the appeal in a congratulatory message to mark the country’s 65th Independence Anniversary.

The Federal Government had earlier declared Wednesday, October 1, a public holiday to commemorate the country’s independence from Britain in 1960.

However, in a late announcement on Monday, the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation disclosed that the traditional Independence Day parade would no longer be held.

The statement read: “At 65, we are mature and should be working for the unity of the nation and prosperity of our people. We salute your resilience, patience and endurance in the last two years. We deeply appreciate your support and understanding.

“In line with the theme of this year’s celebration, ‘All hands are on deck for a greater Nigeria,’ I urge you to continue to bear the temporary discomfort of the ongoing reforms.

“We are not unaware of the pains occasioned by the reforms. But I want to assure you that very soon, this will be a thing of the past because the benefits of the reforms are beginning to manifest positively.”

Continuing, the Senate president urged Nigerians to endure the pains of the reforms for a little while longer in the interest of the future generations.

Akpabio also dismissed insinuations by critics of the current administration that the country has finished running its course.

“I must tell you that Nigeria is not finished. Do not buy into the mischievous narrative that Nigeria is irredeemable.

“We are on the right pedestal and the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Tinubu’s administration is reshaping the country; we are growing and making progress.

“If we all join hands together to support the reforms, Nigeria will become better and surely get to the promised land,” he stated. (Punch)

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Tinubu returns to Abuja after vacation in Europe

President Bola Tinubu on Tuesday returned to Abuja after concluding his annual working vacation in Europe.

Tinubu arrived at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport and was received by Senate President Godswill Akpabio and Nasarawa State Governor Abdullahi Sule.

Also at the airport were his Chief of Staff, Femi Gbajabiamila, and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun.

The Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, confirmed the President’s return in a statement issued on Monday.

He said Tinubu concluded his work vacation ahead of schedule and would resume official duties on Tuesday.

The President departed Nigeria on September 4 for France, intending to split his annual holiday between France and the United Kingdom.

During his stay in Paris, Tinubu held a private luncheon with French President Emmanuel Macron at the Élysée Palace.

Both leaders discussed bilateral cooperation and pledged to strengthen partnerships for mutual prosperity and global stability. (Channels)

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Buhari left his boots in corridors of power – Akpabio

Senate President Godswill Akpabio on Thursday paid tribute to the late President Muhammadu Buhari, describing him as a man of discipline and integrity who left a lasting imprint on Nigeria’s leadership.

Speaking during the special session of the Expanded Federal Executive Council meeting held in Buhari’s honour, Akpabio said the former president may not have been perfect, but he stood firmly for discipline, honour and patriotism.

“President Buhari did not merely pass through the corridors of power. He left his boots and his imprints in them. Buhari was not perfect. No leader is. But he was principled. He stood for something.

‘In a world where it is easy to chase headlines, he chose instead to chase honour. Where others sought glory, he sought duty,” Akpabio said.

The Senate President, who once served as a minister under Buhari’s administration, described the late leader as austere and unflamboyant, yet driven by a deep sense of duty and patriotism.

Akpabio said, “As a minister in his cabinet, appointed by him, I saw President Buhari unplugged. He was not flamboyant—far from it. His voice was measured. His steps, deliberate. His public demeanour, austere.

“But beneath that calm exterior beat the heart of a patriot—unyielding, unbending, and utterly uninterested in personal comfort when duty called.”

He added that Buhari’s legacy was not only in his achievements but also in the moral standard he upheld in governance.

“He believed that discipline mattered. That integrity mattered. That leadership, even when lonely, must be anchored in something greater than power,” he stated.

Akpabio acknowledged that Buhari’s style may have attracted criticism but maintained that even his critics could not question his moral uprightness.

He said, “Let us be honest—he was tough. He was a soldier who did not flinch under fire, a leader who did not flee from responsibility, and above all, a Nigerian whose loyalty to this nation was never up for sale.

“And yes, some disagreed with him. That is the nature of democracy. But even his fiercest critics will admit: he did not pilfer the nation’s purse, nor pander to its pleasures. He remained, to the very end, a sentinel of Spartan simplicity and austere integrity.”

Akpabio concluded that Buhari’s name would be remembered in history not for flamboyance or fanfare, but for his resolute commitment to national duty.

“Let it be said by generations to come, that a man once walked this land with a firm gait, a steady gaze, and an iron sense of duty. His name was Muhammadu Buhari,” he stated. (Punch)

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Court orders Senate to recall suspended Natasha

A Federal High Court in Abuja on Friday ruled that the Nigerian Senate acted beyond its powers by suspending Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan for six months, ordering her immediate recall to the Red Chamber.

Justice Binta Nyako, who delivered the judgment, described the duration of the suspension as “excessive” and without a clear legal foundation.

According to the court, both Chapter 8 of the Senate Standing Orders and Section 14 of the Legislative Houses (Powers and Privileges) Act, which the upper chamber relied upon, do not stipulate a maximum suspension period. As such, they were deemed overreaching in this case.

The judge pointed out that since the National Assembly is only required to sit for 181 days in a legislative year, suspending a lawmaker for roughly that same length of time effectively silences the voice of an entire constituency—a move she described as unconstitutional.

“While the Senate has the authority to discipline its members, such sanctions must not go so far as to deny constituents their right to representation,” Nyako ruled.

However, the court sided with Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, on a separate issue, stating that his refusal to allow Akpoti-Uduaghan to speak during a plenary—on the grounds that she was not seated in her designated chair—did not amount to a violation of her rights.

Nyako also dismissed Akpabio’s argument that the judiciary had no business interfering in what he called an “internal affair” of the legislature, stating that fundamental rights and representation are matters squarely within the court’s purview.

In a twist, the court imposed a monetary penalty on Akpoti-Uduaghan for breaching a prior court directive that barred both parties from making public statements about the ongoing legal matter.

The fine runs into millions of naira. (Punch)