Akpabio debunks claims of Senator’s embarrassment during plenary

Godswill Akpabio, the Senate President, has refuted reports suggesting that Senator Sani Musa was embarrassed during a recent Senate plenary session over his alleged inability to define the word “harmonised”.

In a public statement issued on Friday, the Senate President himself, Akpabio, described the circulating narrative, particularly one published by Linda Ikeji’s Blog, as “false” and “misleading,” noting that no such incident occurred on the Senate floor.

It would be recalled that on Wednesday, during the adoption of the Conference Report of the Tax Reform Bills that Abdul Ningi had raised a point of Order requesting that either a Senate or House version of the clauses be adopted rather than the committee use the word harmonise.

In a bid to find clarity, Akpabio asked Musa what he meant by harmonise as stated in the document.

Musa, while trying to explain himself, was asked to approach the chair (come to the Senate President’s desk) where the issues were ironed out, and the Senate version of the clauses was adopted.

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Speaking to this, Akpabio in the statement said, “Senator Musa was neither embarrassed nor unable to respond.

“At the time he was called upon, a point of order was raised by Senator Abdul Ningi, which, in accordance with our rules, required immediate procedural attention. The session continued without any breach of decorum.”

He further described the reports as sensational and urged media outlets to embrace responsible journalism, especially when reporting on parliamentary proceedings.

Akpabio also praised Senator Musa’s legislative contributions, noting his leadership in spearheading the harmonisation of the Tax Reform Bills as Chairman of both the Joint Committee on Finance and the Conference Committee.

He said, “I also wish to highlight that Senator Sani Musa has been instrumental in leading key legislative efforts, both as Chairman Joint Committee on Finance, and particularly as Chairman of the Conference Committee that successfully worked through all legislative processes and harmonised the Tax Reform Bills, a legislative milestone widely commended by both chambers and stakeholders.”

The Senate President emphasised that the Red Chamber operates with a culture of “respect, order, and integrity,” and that public commentary, while welcome, should be based on verified facts rather than speculation or distortion.