Akpabio, Bamidele dismiss claims Senate neglecting Reps bills
Senate President Godswill Akpabio and Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele have pushed back against recent criticisms from the House of Representatives, insisting that the red chamber has not been negligent in handling bills passed by the lower house.
This comes amid growing tension between both chambers of the National Assembly, following accusations that the Senate has persistently delayed concurrence on several bills transmitted from the House.
Reacting to the concerns, Akpabio and Bamidele clarified that the Senate remains committed to collaborating with the House and had, in fact, approved six concurrence bills originating from the green chamber in the past week alone.
Akpabio emphasised the Senate’s dedication to legislative cooperation, stating: “It takes two hands to clap. We have been attending to the bills from the House of Representatives. We are still going to attend to them. And we will continue to work together in the interest of Nigeria and Nigerians.”
The rift emerged after the House voted to halt deliberations on bills initiated by the Senate, citing ongoing delays in action on over 140 House-approved pieces of legislation. Lawmakers particularly pointed to the Senate’s inaction on multiple bills sponsored by Speaker Tajudeen Abbas.
The dispute escalated during a House session when a Senate-originated bill to establish a Federal Orthopaedic Hospital in Obokun, Osun State, was rejected. Though it appeared on the order paper for second reading, the bill was stepped down after several members voiced frustration over the Senate’s treatment of House-passed legislation.
Majority Leader Julius Ihonvbere had moved the motion for the bill’s second reading, while Minority Leader Kingsley Chinda, though seconding it, expressed concern over the Senate’s handling of legislative proposals from the House.
“I will reluctantly second the motion for the second reading of this bill,” Chinda said, echoing widespread discontent among members.
During Tuesday’s plenary, Bamidele addressed the controversy while presenting one of the concurrence bills from the House. “The first two businesses of the day are concurrence bills from the House of Representatives,” he said.
He continued: “I just want to put it on record that without attempting to respond to what was published in some newspapers about the Senate not working on concurrence bills from the House of Representatives.
“For the record, we have been doing what we are supposed to do. Only last week, the Senate concurred to six bills from the House of Representatives. We know we have the principle of reciprocity that governs our operations. But this does not necessarily mean garbage in, garbage out.
“We have the duty, as the foremost democratic institution in the country, to exercise due diligence on the bills. We will continue to consider concurrence bills from the House of Representatives the same way they considered our own bills. We will ensure that it is given attention in overriding public interest. I just want to say this for the record.
“We have been attending to these concurrence bills from the House of Representatives. We will continue to do what we are supposed to do consistent with our mandates under the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended).”
Echoing Bamidele’s remarks, Akpabio reiterated that the Senate was not taking any legislative input from the House lightly.
“Last week, we attended to about six of those bills, and this week, I don’t know how many. But at least I know we are going to do two today.
“So please, let our brothers in the House of Representatives know that we cannot joke with anything that comes from there.
“It takes two hands to clap, and we continue to work together.”
