Plenary at the ongoing National Conference resumed on Monday with delegates disagreeing on the rules that would guide their deliberations.
One of the issues that generated heated debate was the number of delegates to form the quorum during sittings.
However, after heated arguments, the Chairman of the conference, Justice Idris Kutigi (retd.), ruled that the provision in the rules that one-third of all the delegates should form the quorum remained.
The delegates further had a hot debate on the duration of the plenary, following a proposal by Chief Segun Osoba, a former governor of Ogun State.
Osoba, a leader of All Progressives Congress, had proposed an amendment to the provision of the rules of proceedings, saying that the conference should not be rigid about it.
The current rule stipulates that plenary begins at 10 am and lasts till 2pm to give way for a lunch break that lasts till 4pm when plenary resumes to close at 6pm.
Some of the delegates canvassed for the plenary to hold between 9am and 4pm without break, while others suggested the reduction of the break time to one hour, to enable them to close at 5pm.
However, Kutigi ruled that the current provision be retained.
Members also debated on basing the final decision on any issue at the conference on three-quarter (75 per cent) majority.
Mike Ozekhome (SAN) and some delegates opposed the provision, arguing that no parliament world over decided any matter based on three-quarter majority votes.
They argued that the practice rather, was to base decisions on two-third majority.
Kutigi, however, drew the attention of the members to President Goodluck Jonathan’s inaugural speech, stating that decisions on matters should receive 75 per cent majority votes.
There was no final decision on the provision when the conference adjourned at 2pm for break.
Some delegates had earlier expressed displeasure over the difficulties they went through before gaining entrance to the venue.
They called on the secretariat to ensure that they were not made to have such experience again.
Meanwhile, some delegates on Monday openly grumbled over their inability to eat lunch at the ongoing national conference in Abuja.
The delegates, who lined up for food at the National Judicial Institute venue of the conference, were not happy that they were unable to eat after queuing for a long period.
One of the delegates, who spoke with our correspondent on the condition of anonymity, said that she was not happy that the management did not take the number of the delegates attending the conference into cognisance judging from the quantity of food prepared for them.
“See the way we lined up for food and at the end of the day, some of us were not served. It is that bad because money had been voted for this,” she said.
Another delegate said the management ought to take into cognisance their age and should therefore have prepared food for them, since it had agreed to do so.
Their grudge was noticed by the Chairman of the conference, Justice Idris Kutigi, who asked the Secretary, Dr. Valerie Azinge, to speak to the delegates when they resumed after the break.
Kutigi said the secretary should “apologise for what happened during the break.”
Azinge, who later spoke to the delegates, apologised to them for their inability to eat. Click to signup for FREE news updates, latest information and hottest gists everyday
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Na so they gather u 4 food.
ReplyDeleteHehehehe. Food mongers.
ReplyDeleteDon't believe in this confab for a bit,this ageing men and women discussing a future the won't be part of. If they are sincere they should play advisory role
ReplyDelete