•NASS gives DSS, police 24 hours to recover mace

Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, has shed light on how invading thugs almost kidnapped two senators, yesterday.

It was also a day the National Assembly gave the Inspector General of Police, Ibrahim Idris and Director General of the Department of State Security, Lawal Daura, 24 hours to recover the Senate mace.

The lawmakers handed down the directive, yesterday, shortly after unidentified hoodlums invaded the Senate chambers and disrupted proceedings.

Back in the Senate, Ekweremadu said in the “commotion” which arose from theft of the mace, two senators were almost abducted.

Senator Solomon Adeola had been abducted by some unknown persons but he managed to escape, within the precincts of the National Assembly; but, with a sprained leg.

The identity of the other senator was not revealed.

Omo-Agege gained entrance into the upper legislative chamber, accompanied by some unidentified persons who carted away the mace.

Speaking at a reconvened session after a “spare mace” had been provided, Ekweremadu said Senate would not be “intimidated” by threats to the National Assembly.

Across the aisle, there was uproar in the House of Representatives.

After the opening formalities at yesterday’s plenary, House Leader, Femi Gbajabiamila, in a motion under Matters of Urgent National Importance, drew the chamber’s attention to the incident in the Senate.

At the end of a very heated debate, the House condemned the invasion of the Senate in very strong terms and gave the IGP a 24-hour ultimatum to recover the mace.

“We are giving the inspector general of police and the director of the SSS (state security service), to recover our mace within 24 hours,” said Deputy Speaker, Yussuf Lasun, who presided at yesterday’s plenary.

Earlier, lawmakers in the House, who spoke on the motion,  described  the invasion as a failed coup d’etat and an attack on democracy. They noted that efforts must be made to protect the Legislature; as it is the bastion of democracy.

The lawmakers also accused the security agencies of collusion in the incident and called for actions to beef up security in the National Assembly.

Midway into the debate, the House became rowdy, with several lawmakers  calling for adjournment of plenary.

The deputy speaker’s announcement that a delegation would be sent to the Senate on a solidarity visit was greeted with shouts of “no, no, no.”

After few minutes of rowdiness, the House resolved to stand  down deliberations for 30 minutes to enable members pay a solidarity visit to the Senate.

When the House resumed debate on the motion, after its visit to the Senate, Ahmed Pategi said the attack could not have been carried out by thugs.

•Mace snatching… 18 years after

Hoodlums, suspected to be loyal to Senator Ovie Omo-Agege, from Delta State, who snatched the Senate mace, yesterday, evoked an 18-year-old memory in the federal legislature.

The operation lasted less than 10 minutes but the action was as daring as it was surprising.

But, something similar happened 18 years ago.

In an attempt to stall his impeachment in 2000, then Senate President, Chuba Okadigbo, snatched the mace and reportedly took it to his house.

The Federal Government sent policemen to Okadigbo’s residence in Abuja, to retrieve the missing mace but he refused to release it.

Okadigbo had accused former President Olusegun Obasanjo of being behind the plot to remove him.

“The police arrived in six jeeps fully loaded with armed officers.

“They told me they had come to collect the mace and that they were acting on orders from the Inspector General of Police. I said I would never give them the mace. ‘I have to be dead before you get the mace,’ I told them.

“This is executive lawlessness and is unprecedented in Nigeria’s history,” Okadigbo told British Broadcasting Corporation at the time.

Okadigbo was eventually impeached.

Yesterday, the police are on a similar mission—retrieving a missing mace.