Chief Whip of the Senate, Senator Ali Ndume, has revealed the reason behind storming out of the chamber after an encounter with the Senate President Godswill Akpabio, on Tuesday.
Ndume, at the plenary, had brought the Senate’s attention to what he thought were contraventions.
The Borno South senator invoked a point of order to call the attention of the Senate President to “procedural infringements” in the chamber.
This went against established parliamentary protocol as Akpabio did not allow Ndume to complete his speech and the senator walked out of the chamber afterwards.
During an interview with BBC Hausa, Ndume said his reason for leaving when the debate on a matter related to the closing of Nigeria’s borders was being debated.
He explained that the situation emanated “when Senator Kawu Sumaila proposed a motion which he said was urgent, on closing the border between Nigeria and Niger.
“At first, it was argued that the motion was not urgent, but the president of the Senate let him finish what he wanted to say.
“After hearing the motion, it was agreed that since it is related to security, it should be suspended.”
He further said that he wanted to explain the significance of the motion to the chamber, but the Senate President denied him the opportunity to speak.
“I would like to clarify that the motion, although impactful, falls outside the jurisdiction of the Nigerian Senate.
“The closure of the border was not initiated by the President of Nigeria, but rather during his tenure as President of ECOWAS. As such, he has the authority to advocate on our behalf.
“In order to address this matter, it is imperative to involve the President of our nation, but I was not afforded the opportunity to convey this message.
“While this was happening, it coincided with the time of prayer, prompting my departure. Consequently, my colleagues misconstrued my exit, and the journalists changed the meaning of my exit,” Ndume said.