The Senate refused to punish former chief whip Ali Ndume after he called lawmakers “kleptomaniacs” in an interview.
The proposal was turned down after Senator Fasuyi Cyril from Ekiti North raised a point of order on Wednesday.
Senator Cyril called on the Senate to impose punitive actions on Ndume for his remarks.
Senator Cyril had urged the Senate to take punitive measures against Ndume over his statement. However, when Senate President Godswill Akpabio eventually called for a voice vote on referring the matter to the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges, and Public Petitions, it was unanimously rejected.
The Senate subsequently convened in a closed-door executive session.
The decision was made after the Senate replaced Ndume with Tahir Munguno as Chief Whip.
In a voice vote, the Senate unanimously resolved to replace Sen. Ali Ndume as Chief Whip, following a letter of complaint from the All Progressives Congress (APC) National Headquarters regarding his inappropriate remarks. Senate President Sen. Godswill Akpabio read the letter during the session.
The Southern Borno Senator, who was noticeably absent today, has been consistently making critical remarks about President Bola Tinubu’s economic policies, highlighting issues such as economic hardship, food scarcity, and the resulting security crisis.
Ndume not only lost his position as Chief Whip but was also removed from his role as Vice Chairman of the Senate Committee on Appropriations, which he co-chaired.
He has been appointed as the Chair of the Senate Committee on Tourism.
