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On Wednesday, Senate President, Bukola Saraki blocked Senators elected on the platform of the All Progressives Congress, APC from reading a letter sent by the party's leadership recommending some senators to occupy specific principal officers of the senate.
Gbenga Ashafa (APC-Lagos East), who relied on Order 15 of the Senate Standing Order, urged Saraki to give permission so the letter could be read on the floor of senate. Ashafa said, ''Yesterday, most of the media houses carried a letter that was written by the chairman of our great party, the APC. We were expecting that that letter which has been received in your office will be read in order to see to the resolution of the party’s leadership tussle''
Quoting from Order 28 (1) he read, ''There shall be a Majority Leader of the Senate. The Majority Leader shall be a senator nominated from the party with the highest number of senators.
''I believe that that letter should have been read to the hearing of all senators here present. Perhaps that will be the solution to the leadership tussle in the Senate,” he said.
However, Ibn Na’Allah (APC-Kebbi South) immediately countered the point of order and explained that the nomination should be made “from” the party not made “by” the party.
''By the ordinary principles of interpretation of documents that have been agreed by parties, the ordinary letters and words used must be given their effective meaning. Order 28 used ‘from’, not ‘by’. What this seeks to do is to deter the minority party from nominating the Majority Leader,” he said.
The President of the Senate, Bukola Saraki, who presided over plenary, ruled Mr. Ashafa out of order and declined to read the said letter.
Saraki said, ''I have listened to Senators Ashafa and Na’Allah. Going by the rules and what has been said earlier, I think I will just note what Senator Ashafa has said.We will leave the matter as that and in that case, rule that out of order.”
READ: APC Writes Letter to Saraki,Dogara
Gbenga Ashafa (APC-Lagos East), who relied on Order 15 of the Senate Standing Order, urged Saraki to give permission so the letter could be read on the floor of senate. Ashafa said, ''Yesterday, most of the media houses carried a letter that was written by the chairman of our great party, the APC. We were expecting that that letter which has been received in your office will be read in order to see to the resolution of the party’s leadership tussle''
Quoting from Order 28 (1) he read, ''There shall be a Majority Leader of the Senate. The Majority Leader shall be a senator nominated from the party with the highest number of senators.
''I believe that that letter should have been read to the hearing of all senators here present. Perhaps that will be the solution to the leadership tussle in the Senate,” he said.
However, Ibn Na’Allah (APC-Kebbi South) immediately countered the point of order and explained that the nomination should be made “from” the party not made “by” the party.
''By the ordinary principles of interpretation of documents that have been agreed by parties, the ordinary letters and words used must be given their effective meaning. Order 28 used ‘from’, not ‘by’. What this seeks to do is to deter the minority party from nominating the Majority Leader,” he said.
The President of the Senate, Bukola Saraki, who presided over plenary, ruled Mr. Ashafa out of order and declined to read the said letter.
Saraki said, ''I have listened to Senators Ashafa and Na’Allah. Going by the rules and what has been said earlier, I think I will just note what Senator Ashafa has said.We will leave the matter as that and in that case, rule that out of order.”
READ: APC Writes Letter to Saraki,Dogara
