*Insist On Personal Appearance
The House of Representatives has moved the Sectoral debate scheduled for Thursday (today) due to the absence of the Service Chiefs who were expected to attend in person.
The Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Musa; Chief of Army Staff, Lt-General Taoreed Lagbaja; Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Hassan Abubakar; Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Emmanuel Ogalla; and the Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, were invited to the session as part of the House’s Sectorial Debates, as per Order 17, Rules 1(3) of the Standing Orders.
However, the Service Chiefs and the IGP failed to attend and instead sent representatives, who were denied participation by the House, insisting on the Chiefs’ personal presence.
Despite the attempt by the representatives to introduce themselves, Deputy Speaker Benjamin Kalu emphasized the importance of the Chiefs attending in person, stating, “Chief Executives, be it private sector or public sector, they must come in person. I want to pray that we don’t break this sacred tradition of our House lest we be taken for granted.”
Following this, a motion to suspend the sectoral engagement until the leaders’ direct appearance was proposed by the Deputy Speaker and seconded by another member, which was ultimately adopted by the House.
Speaker Abbas Tajuddeen conveyed the House’s stance, emphasizing the necessity for the Chiefs to be present, extending the engagement to the following Tuesday to accommodate their attendance.
The House expressed appreciation for the representatives’ presence but maintained the firm requirement for the Service Chiefs’ personal appearance in the forthcoming session.
