Reps Ad-hoc C’ttee Vows To Sanction Members Who Resort To Violence Ahead Of Tuesday Resumption

House of RepsAs members of the House of Representatives resume plenary on today, the Adhoc Committee on Code of Conduct has warned returning members to behave in an orderly manner.
The last time the House sat was on June 25 but plenary was brought to an abrupt end when some members attempted to seize the mace leading to a free-for-all fight between members loyal to Speaker Yakubu Dogara and Femi Gbajabiamila.
After the tension generated by the fracas subsided, Mr. Dogara postponed plenary to July 28.
Even as lawmakers resume on Tuesday, there are still fears the plenary session might end up in a free-for-all if the pending issues especially the sharing of principal offices among All Progressives Congress members, who are in the majority, is not resolved.
A meeting called by President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa on Monday reportedly ended up in a stalemate but expectations are high that an amicable resolution will be arrived at before the members resume today.
But the ad hoc committee on Monday warned that it would no longer tolerate the unruly behavior of members, saying it has been saddled with the responsibility of carrying out the functions of the Standing Committee on Ethics and Privileges.
The committee, in a notice signed by Aminu Shagari, therefore, called on all returning members to conduct themselves in an orderly manner on Tuesday.
“The Committee will no longer tolerate any unruly behaviour by any member of the House no matter how highly placed”, he said.
The notice also advised members who have grievances to explore peaceful avenues of seeking redress instead of resorting to violence on the floor of the House, or the precincts of the National Assembly.
“There are adequate sanctions in place to penalise any member who may want to disrupt the peace during plenary, Committee meetings or other legislative functions of the House.
“The House will deal decisively with any member who violates the rules, disrupts plenary, or is found wanting of misconduct and other sundry offences.
“Members are admonished to demonstrate high standards of ethics consistent with the important role of Lawmaking and the 8th Assembly Legislative Agenda which places emphasis on the wellbeing of the Nigerian people”, it read.