Senate President Godswill Akpabio has declared that the National Assembly will not allow any of its members to hold the institution “hostage,” stressing that the legislature must uphold discipline and respect for its rules to preserve Nigeria’s democracy.
Akpabio stated this in a statement issued on Saturday by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Eseme Eyiboh, titled “The Trials and Triumphs of a Resilient Nigeria’s 10th Senate.”
“The Senate cannot and will not be held hostage by the disruptive instincts of any of its members,” Akpabio said. “Democracy thrives only when its institutions are respected and its rules upheld.”
Although he did not mention any lawmaker by name, his remarks came amid renewed tension following the return of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan (Kogi Central) from a six-month suspension, which she continued to challenge.
The Senate President stressed that enforcing discipline in parliamentary conduct was not aimed at silencing dissent but at maintaining order and preserving institutional integrity.
“The discipline of parliamentary conduct is a universal marker of political civilisation,” Akpabio said. “In the United Kingdom’s House of Commons, the authority of the Speaker is absolute and unchallenged. No member, regardless of party or popularity, may openly defy the Speaker’s ruling without consequences.”
He argued that Nigeria’s legislative rules were not “ceremonial relics” but essential instruments for safeguarding fairness, stability, and respect for leadership.
“The Nigerian Senate’s Standing Orders are not ceremonial relics from the past,” he said. “They are the living constitution of the institution, carefully designed to preserve fairness, consistency, and the sanctity of the legislative process.”
Defending the right of the legislature to discipline erring members, Akpabio drew parallels with global parliamentary practices, noting that even in mature democracies, lawmakers are sanctioned for misconduct.
“In the world’s most respected parliaments, members who flout rules face swift consequences,” he said. “In the British House of Commons, suspension or expulsion is not rare when a member’s behaviour undermines parliamentary dignity. Nigeria’s Senate has every right to apply similar standards.”
He described the 10th Senate as “a chamber of resilience and balance,” committed to demonstrating that “freedom within order is the truest form of democracy.”
“When the chamber asserts that it will not be held hostage by the disruptive instincts of any single member, it is affirming the primacy of collective responsibility over individual grandstanding,” he said. “This is how strong legislatures endure — not by silencing dissent, but by ensuring that dissent respects the bounds of procedure.”
Akpabio added that his leadership approach would remain one of “firmness and inclusion,” stressing that the upper chamber must continue to serve as a stabilising force amid growing populism and public cynicism.
“Leadership of this sort does not seek applause; it seeks stability,” he stated. “By upholding its Standing Orders, the Senate has reclaimed its moral authority and demonstrated that rules, properly enforced, are not instruments of oppression but shields against institutional decay.”
His comments come amid ongoing debate over legislative discipline and the limits of free expression within parliamentary settings, an issue that has repeatedly tested the balance between order and opposition in Nigeria’s democratic evolution.
