The Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, has assured that there is no likelihood of senators resorting to physical altercations, regardless of the intensity of their disagreements.
Within the democratic framework, the Senate President asserted the principle that the minority’s voices would be heard, while the decisions would reflect the preferences of the majority.
Senator Akpabio briefed the press following a private discussion with President Bola Tinubu at the Presidential Villa in Abuja.
According to him, ‘In the parliament, sometimes you disagree to agree. We are all working in one accord. There is no problem at all. Even if some people disagree on some of the happenings in the senate, still, it is only the majority decision that is going to prevail and parliament is like that.’
‘But we will never get to a point of throwing chairs. We will never get to that point. The senate is too mature, full of matured people, so, if we have a disagreement, we immediately go into a closed session, resolve it and come out smiling.’
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‘We are politicians, no permanent hatred but permanent interest. That interest is is the interest of the nation. To support the President, support his administration in legislation, oversights functions to succeed, in order to move the country forward and that is what we have been doing and that is what we are committed to doing.’
Shedding more light on his State House visit, he clarified that it was to update the President on the 10th Assembly retreat scheduled for Thursday in Akwa Ibom State and to request his support in facilitating participation in the retreat.
‘And he has graciously done that and I told him some of the things we are going to discuss – task reform and ways of ensuring the generation of revenue for him to work for Nigerians,’ he said.
He further added, ‘He needs to be informed that the Senate will not be available in Abuja. We are moving the Senate all the way to Akwa Ibom for the next four days. Thereafter, will be travelling to Angola to attend the international parliamentary union so, before he sees me, it will take probably another nine days. So, I needed to inform him.’