A mild drama unfolded at the National Assembly on Wednesday as the Senate debated whether to allow members of President Bola Tinubu’s economic team to attend the plenary session.
The tension highlighted divisions among lawmakers concerning the Tax Reform Bills, with disagreements over the procedural appropriateness of inviting economic experts into the chamber.
Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele (APC, Ekiti Central) moved to suspend Order 12, which regulates who may attend Senate plenary, to allow key officials from the economic team, including tax experts, consultants, the Director-General of the Budget Office, and the Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service, Zacchaeus Adedeji, to participate in the discussion.
Bamidele emphasized the significance of the debate and the need for these experts to explain the Tax Reform Bills in detail.
“Tax experts, consultants, the Director-General of the Budget Office, and the Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue, Zacchaeus Adedeji, are here to explain the Tax Reform Bills in detail,” Bamidele said, outlining the importance of the debate for lawmakers.
However, Senator Abdul Ningi (PDP, Bauchi Central) opposed the motion, citing Senate rules.
Ningi argued that the issue should be handled at the committee level, particularly by the Finance Committee, and not in plenary.
He suggested that the matter be referred to the appropriate committee for further deliberation.
“This issue should be dealt with at the committee level, particularly by the Finance Committee, not in plenary,” Ningi argued, urging that the matter be referred to the appropriate committee for further deliberation.
In defense of the motion, Deputy Senate President Jibrin Barau (APC, Kano North) supported the suspension of the rule for transparency, asserting that allowing the economic team to attend the plenary would ensure that Nigerians could directly witness the debate and hear from the experts involved in the reform process.
“We are suspending the rule for transparency, so Nigerians can witness the debate and hear directly from those who will explain the reform,” Barau said.
Bamidele further clarified that suspending Order 12, along with invoking Order 1B (which permits the Senate to regulate its procedures where no specific rule exists), was crucial to providing the public with a clear understanding of the Tax Reform Bills. He emphasized that the goal was to ensure transparency and allow Nigerians to hear from the experts themselves.
Despite these clarifications, the debate grew more heated when Senator Ali Ndume (APC, Borno South) raised concerns about the motion’s absence in the official Order Paper, arguing that such an important issue should have been listed for discussion or rescheduled for another day.
Barau quickly ruled Ndume out of order, dismissing his objections as mere rhetoric. Tensions escalated when Ndume demanded an apology from Barau, accusing him of insulting his comments. Barau responded with laughter, stating that the term “rhetoric” was not an insult, which led to another ruling in Ndume’s favor.
In the end, despite the clashes and procedural disagreements, the economic team was permitted into the plenary, marking a dramatic moment in the ongoing legislative process surrounding the Tax Reform Bills.
“Let Nigerians know, let us hear these experts,” Bamidele added.
