EXPLAINER: Why does seating arrangement matter in the senate?

Over the past few days, the Nigerian senate has been enmeshed in an intense drama between Senate President Godswill Akpabio and Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, the Kogi central senator.

Their face-off began as a result of seat allocation in the red chamber of the national assembly.

THE GENESIS

Following the defection of some senators, some seats were reassigned, and Akpoti-Uduaghan was among those affected. However, during the plenary of February 20, Akpoti-Uduaghan ignored her new position and occupied her previous seat.

Tahir Monguno, the senate chief whip, reacted by saying the adjustments were necessary to accommodate opposition lawmakers who had defected to the ruling party.

Monguno warned that failure to adhere to the new seating arrangement could have consequences, including preventing defaulting lawmakers from contributing to debates.

Akpoti-Uduaghan, however, insisted on maintaining her original seat, repeatedly raising a point of order — but the senate president refused to recognise her, and she was overruled when she attempted to speak from her original seat.

“I don’t care if I am silenced,” Akpoti-Uduaghan said to Akpabio. “I am not afraid of you. You have denied me my privilege!”

The situation degenerated into a mild commotion as some senators pleaded with her to move to her new seat. The sergeant-at-arms, on the order of the senate president, also enclosed her in a bid to escort her out from the plenary.

The senate later referred Akpoti-Uduaghan to the committee on ethics and privileges for disciplinary review over the fray.

Speaking in an interview on Human Rights Radio a day after the incident, the Kogi central lawmaker claimed that the change in seating arrangement was a deliberate attempt to diminish her visibility and reduce her chances of contributing to debates.

The face-off has since sparked varied reactions, with some Nigerians criticising the senate leadership for sidelining women and others reprimanding Akpoti-Uduaghan for not adhering to the senate’s rules.

But what is the hullabaloo all about, and why does seating arrangement matter in the senate?

WHY LAWMAKERS PREFER FRONT-ROW SEATS

Senators in the front-row seats near the principal officers, or in more elevated areas, are more likely to get the attention of the presiding officer during plenary sessions, giving them a greater chance to be called upon to contribute to debates.

For instance, at the house of representatives, Speaker Tajudeen Abbas and Benjamin Kalu, his deputy, sometimes struggle to identify lawmakers seated at the extreme rear.

Lawmakers also prefer to sit close to the aisle to enable them to exchange handshakes and felicitations with the presiding officers during processions.

The green chamber, however, has a significantly higher number of representatives (360) than the red chamber, which has only 109 members.

PREVIOUS RIFTS OVER SEATING ARRANGEMENTS

There have been previous instances of disputes in the senate over seating arrangements.

At the senate plenary of October 17, 2018, Akpabio clashed with Bukola Saraki, then senate president, over a similar issue, leading to a rowdy session.

The row started when Albert Akpan, the senator representing Akwa Ibom north-east at the time, accused the All Progressives Congress (APC) of plotting to foment trouble during the 2019 governorship election in the state.

Akpabio sought to respond to the allegation using the microphone of Ali Ndume, senator representing Borno south, since the microphone on his seat was not functioning.

However, Saraki insisted that Akpabio move to a different seat with a functioning microphone, which had been assigned to him by the clerk.

Saraki refused to allow Akpabio to speak using the microphone attached to Ndume’s seat.

Another incident occurred on April 30 2024, when the senators began using the refurbished red chamber.

Danjuma Goje, senator representing Gombe central, and Sahabi Yau, senator representing Zamfara north, expressed displeasure over their assigned seats and complained to Opeyemi Bamidele, the majority leader.

Goje and Yau were dissatisfied with their positions on the second row on the right side of the middle aisle.

The four-term senators insisted they should have been assigned seats in the front row on the extreme right — opposite the row of the majority leader and the deputy senate president.

The issue was later resolved at an executive session.

WHAT SENATE STANDING ORDER SAYS ABOUT SEATING ARRANGEMENT

Order 11, Rule 1 of the Senate Standing Order gives the senate president the power to allocate seats to senators.

Rule 2 says a senator “may only speak from the seat allocated to him, provided that the President of the Senate may change the allocation from time to time”.

The rule allows the senate president to reshuffle senators’ seat allocations at his discretion. By tradition, front-row seats are reserved for principal officers and senior-ranking members.

The Senate Standing Order also grants the senate president substantial authority, making him the custodian of the rules.

Rule 25 further lists the duties of senate president to include being responsible for the observance of the rules of debates and interpreting the rules of the chamber.

This implies that he determines what is permissible during debates and how the rules are applied.