By Dr. Tonye Clinton Jaja
On the 7th May 2025, I received a WhatsApp phone call from a former legislator and member of the National Assembly who has a personal working relationship with His Excellency Godswill Obot Akpabio-GOA, who is the President of the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
In defence of the Senate President, Akpabio, this former law-maker said that Akpabio has a very jovial personality, he is not a person who takes anything to heart.
He cited as an example how Akpabio reconciled with His Excellency Nyesom Ezenwo Wike, the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) who has previously spoken unprintable names against AKPABIO.
In a nutshell, in defence of the Senate President, he is a “Jolly-Good-Fellow”!!!
This is also the same testimony of the wife of Akpabio, who had previously stated that it is in Akpabio’s nature (second nature) to make light of every situation by cracking a joke!!!
According to his wife, that is the reason why Akpabio is always misunderstood!!!
We would give Akpabio the benefit of the doubt in this regard.
As long as his jokes are not at the expense of public funds, we can enjoy Akpabio’s jokes.
However, there are two jokes that Akpabio is cracking that we the members of the public are not finding funny or laughing at because it comes at huge expense and depletion of public funds.
On 6th March 2025, in violation of both the judgments of Nigerian courts of law and the Standing Orders of the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Akpabio sanctioned the imposition of a six month (180days) suspension upon Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan.
Whereas both the courts of law and the relevant Senate Standing Orders stipulates a maximum of 14 days suspension for any erring legislator.
This is a joke taken too far by Akpabio and we, members of the public (especially the constituents of Kogi Central Senatorial District) are not finding it funny or laughing because it has negative financial consequences upon them.
Below is a detailed breakdown:
The negative financial consequences upon the 500,000 constituents of Kogi Central Senatorial District because of the six months suspension upon Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan
Both the courts of law and the Standing Orders of the Senate stipulate 14 days as the maximum period of suspension for any errant legislator.
The negative financial consequences of this extended period of suspension is that the over 500,000 registered voters and constituents would not receive the over ₦200,000,000 that is allocated to each Senator for use as constituency projects. Senator Natasha could have build hospitals, roads or other infrastructure for her constituents!!
See the confessions about constituency funds received by Senators this by Senator Abaribe on this website: https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.vanguardngr.com/2024/03/2024-budget-how-funds-were-shared-among-senators-on-zonal-basis-abaribe/amp/
Another joke that Akpabio is cracking that is not funny to the public purse is how he has recently appointed an 18 Man Committee of the Senate to oversee the Rivers State Administrator.
This is a function that could have been performed by the Senate Committee on Establishment and Public Institutions.
The drain on public funds by this Committee on the Rivers State Sole Administrator can be computed using the following estimates:
- Sitting allowance of ₦1,000,000 per sitting per month x 18 Senators for four months =₦72, 000,000
- Clerk of the Committee and secretarial services-₦8,000,000;
- Oversight visit to the office of the Sole Administrator of Rivers State @ ₦5,000,000 per Senator x 18 Senators and 2 Secretarial staff-₦100,000,000
Grand Total-₦180,000,000
This is a very conservative estimate.
Let me conclude by stating for the records, that in contrast to the EXPENSIVE jokes of Akpabio, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, National Assembly is seriously devising ways of reducing the cost of governance by actively getting funding of international donor organisations like the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and UKAID, Konrad Adenauer Stifung (KAS) to cover the costs of major operations of the House of Representatives such as it’s Constitutional Review Committee.
The views expressed by contributors are strictly personal and not of Law & Society Magazine.
