The former Senate president, Ken Nnamani, has said the All Progressives Congress(APC) cannot enforce party supremacy on the floor of the Senate, The Sun reports.
He said this during the public launch of a book: Nigeria’s Fourth Republic National Assembly: Politics, Challenges and Media Perspectives”, written by Dr. Austin Uganwa.
Nnamani, claimed that the events of Tuesday, June 9, occurred because the party misread the issue of party supremacy.
He stated that once senators are elected, they become senators of the Federal Republic, adding that once a Senate president is chosen, he becomes the president of the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
The former Senate president further stressed that it was wrong for the APC to have scheduled a meeting at the same time when the Senate was to convene.
“When we talk about independence of the legislature, it also delves into what happened on June 9. That day, a group of people handling government decided to hold a meeting but, one would have expected that they should be the one to take the floor since we are practising a bicameral legislature, but they did not.
“They gathered at the International Conference Centre (ICC), which is so far away from the vicinity of the National Assembly. At least, they should have been the ones to be there first, to make sure they lead their people inside. But they did not do that, and now they are paying the price for that,” he said.
Senator Nnamadi said: “Now, today, we are grappling with the issue of party supremacy. Party is ephemeral and the legislature should stand for democratic governance for Nigerians.”
He said this during the public launch of a book: Nigeria’s Fourth Republic National Assembly: Politics, Challenges and Media Perspectives”, written by Dr. Austin Uganwa.
Nnamani, claimed that the events of Tuesday, June 9, occurred because the party misread the issue of party supremacy.
He stated that once senators are elected, they become senators of the Federal Republic, adding that once a Senate president is chosen, he becomes the president of the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
The former Senate president further stressed that it was wrong for the APC to have scheduled a meeting at the same time when the Senate was to convene.
“When we talk about independence of the legislature, it also delves into what happened on June 9. That day, a group of people handling government decided to hold a meeting but, one would have expected that they should be the one to take the floor since we are practising a bicameral legislature, but they did not.
“They gathered at the International Conference Centre (ICC), which is so far away from the vicinity of the National Assembly. At least, they should have been the ones to be there first, to make sure they lead their people inside. But they did not do that, and now they are paying the price for that,” he said.
Senator Nnamadi said: “Now, today, we are grappling with the issue of party supremacy. Party is ephemeral and the legislature should stand for democratic governance for Nigerians.”
