ILAWE-EKITI, Nigeria – The Senate has announced that 74 of its 109 members voted in favour of declaring a state of emergency rule in Rivers State.
This disclosure was made by the Senate Spokesman, Senator Yemi Adaramodu, who represents Ekiti South Senatorial District.
He shared this information with the media over the weekend at his residence in Ilawe-Ekiti, Ekiti State.
Adaramodu clarified that 74 lawmakers out of the 106 members present at the session supported the motion for the emergency rule.
He said, “When the question was put to those in support of the emergency rule in Rivers State, all of them said Yes, and nobody said ‘nay’ after they had discussed the matter.”
The Senate Spokesman also expressed disappointment with the widespread misinterpretation of Nigeria’s rules and constitution.
He lamented that citizens across the country, including lawmakers, judges, and lawyers, often misinterpret the Constitution to fit their personal agendas.
He emphasized, “It is very unfortunate that everybody in Nigeria wants to interpret the rules and the constitution of Nigeria the way they like. Over 200 million Nigerians, and over 200 million Nigerians interpret the constitution of Nigeria, as a lawmaker, a lawyer, and a judge.”
Adaramodu condemned the criticisms aimed at the National Assembly, particularly those claiming that the procedures and rules of the Senate were designed to favor a particular position or agenda.
He stated, “The rules say it must be through the closed session when issues of security matters are discussed, that you cannot be debating it in the open globally. We did not bend the rules; we did what we needed to do!”
He further explained that personal opinions cannot override the law.
The closed-door session, he noted, was where the debate took place, and the emergency rule for Rivers State was unanimously supported by the Senate members.
He also addressed concerns about the duration of the emergency rule.
Adaramodu indicated that it may not last the proposed six months if the situation improves.
He mentioned that the administrator appointed for the emergency rule would report to both the Presidency and the National Assembly, which would continue to monitor the situation through oversight functions.
To help resolve the issues in Rivers State, Adaramodu proposed the formation of a committee made up of prominent Nigerians to mediate and bring peace among the warring factions.
He identified the root cause of the crisis in Rivers as a breakdown in governance, resulting from conflicts between the Governor and the state House of Assembly members.
The situation led to a scenario where only three members loyal to the Governor were able to make laws, while the majority of 32 lawmakers were rendered ineffective.
Responding to accusations of the National Assembly being a “rubber-stamp” institution, Adaramodu firmly denied this suggestion.
He said, “We are not in the Senate with gloves in our hands to go and be knocking and be fighting the executives or other arms of government. That is not our calling. Our calling is that we are partners in progress and while we are partners in progress, we make laws, the execution is in the hands of the executives, and the interpretation is in the hands of the Judiciary.”
