•Senator Ali Ndume
Senate Chief Whip Ali Ndume yesterday criticised the renovation of the inner part of the main chamber of the Senate, saying it looks more like a ‘’conference room.’’
Ndume said apart from the sitting arrangement being improper, the chamber does not only lack electronic voting devices but has poor microphones, reports The Nation.
The Senate resumed plenary last week in its main chamber after over two years of sitting in a temporary hearing room. But before it adjourned for this week, there was a disagreement over sitting arrangement by some ranking senators.
When yesterday’s sitting began, Ndume said the seating arrangement should be adjusted and the equipment required in the chamber made to meet standard.
He said: “This is not a chamber, it is like a conference room. You will not even know that it is me, Ndume, that is speaking, so also when the Leader is speaking.
“We need to correct this. We need to change so many things. Like the sitting rows. If you want to stand up, you will have to use tactics or strategy to stand up or sit down.
“There is also no voting device here. If we are to vote electronically, the facilities are not there but we had that previously.
“There is no clock here for Senators to see time. They are trying to show me one and I am looking for it, it is not even clear. There used to be a big one.”
He observed that the speakers re-echo voices of Senators contributing to discussions on the floor .
“This is a serious observation. If you play back the record, you cannot identify Senate President (Godswill) Akpabio’s voice; you have to listen hard but the audio is supposed to be very clear.
“Most importantly, these seats were better. You have where you can put your documents and conveniently make your contributions, but right now the chamber is echoing.
“Lastly, the seating arrangements, the rules clearly state that it is strictly on seniority. You have some seniors misplaced. All these should be corrected.”
Akpabio, however, blamed the lapses on the leadership of the 9th Senate and the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA) management.
He said: “In the sitting arrangement, 99.9 per cent arrangement had been made. This is not our contract, it was a contract that was awarded in the 9th Senate. It is the FCDA that renovated it.
“If we have a complaint, we have to channel it to the FCDA.”
Akpabio also spoke on the need for the National Assembly to have full autonomy.
“We shall discuss in the future, the need to have autonomy. After 25 years, the National Assembly should be able to own property.”
The FCDA in March 2021 awarded a N30 billion contract for the renovation of the critical segments of the National Assembly complex to a local firm.
