House of Reps Session Turns Chaotic Over Motion to Summon Tinubu

Tension gripped the House of Representatives on Wednesday as lawmakers erupted in disagreement over a motion to summon President Bola Tinubu.

The lawmaker representing Okpe/Sapele/Uvwie federal constituency in Delta State, Benedict Etanabene, during plenary, raised a point of privilege to draw the House’s attention to a June 29 circular issued by the Accountant-General of the Federation, Shamseldeen Ogunjimi.

In the memo, Ogunjimi directed all federal ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs) to immediately stop processing payments for constituency and zonal intervention projects (ZIPs) unless the Ministry of Special Duties and Intergovernmental Affairs has formally vetted them.

Etanabene urged the House to summon Tinubu to address lawmakers on the delay in implementing the 2025 budget, noting that the circular would further hamper the execution of the Appropriation Act.

Similarly, the lawmaker representing Abia State, Mascot Ikwechegh, raised concerns over the pace of budget execution and the impact of funding delays on government operations.

The proposal, however, sparked sharp divisions among lawmakers, with members opposed to the motion repeatedly chanting “sit down” at colleagues speaking in support of it.

The heated exchanges disrupted proceedings and led to a prolonged debate lasting about 30 minutes.

The Speaker of the House, Hon. Tajudeen Abbas, overruled the motion At the end of the deliberations,

Abbas explained that the prayers in the motion, as read on the floor, differed from those in the document originally submitted by the sponsors, stressing it was a deviation from the approved text.