Senate held plenary 100 times in 2012 …spent 158 days on holiday

The Senate held plenary sessions 100 times in as many days and spent a total of 158 days on holiday during the year 2012, findings by Daily Trust have shown.

Based on section 63 of the Constitution, the Senate is required to sit for at least 181 days in a year.

But our correspondent reports that the Senate operates a legislative calendar that runs from June, and sits in plenary only on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays while committees hold sessions throughout the week.

The Constitution does not specify the way the Senate calendar should run and if committee sessions form part of the required sittings, as it only says: “The Senate and the House of Representatives shall each sit for a period of not less than one hundred and eighty-one days in a year.”

Daily Trust’s checks on the activities of the upper chamber from January 1 to December 31, 2012 show that the Senate as a whole sat for a period of 100 days.

Senators resumed on January 10 after the Christmas break of the preceding year 2011, and rounded up legislative business for the year 2012 on December 20.

Within the period, plenary sessions of the Senate were held as follows: January (10 days), February (13 days), March (12 days), April (6 days), May (13 days), June (8 days), July (5 days), August (zero), September (6 days), October (9 days), November (12 days) and December (6 days).

But two leaders in the Senate, in separate reactions to this story, said the Senate legislative duties were not limited to holding plenary sessions of the whole chamber. They said committee activities also form part of their work and that the legislative calendar runs from June to June and not from January to December.

Adjournments

During the year, the Senate went on several recesses for a total of 158 days which amounted to five months in the 12-month calendar year.

On March 28, the Senate adjourned plenary to April 5. This break, as explained then by chairman of the Senate Committee on Rules and Business Ita Solomon Enang, was to give the 56 standing committees enough time to deliberate and conclude work on crucial legislative matters.

From April 5 to 16, the Senate was on Easter vacation. This 12-day break, according to Senate spokesman Enyinnaya Abaribe, was to enable senators to consult with their constituencies for feedback that would aid parliament work.

On May 2, the Senate resumed plenary having adjourned on April 26 for the May Day public holiday.

On May 24, the Senate adjourned plenary to May 30 to mark the 2012 Democracy Day.

Between June 6 and 19, senators were on a 13-day break to mark the first anniversary of the seventh Senate.

On July 10, the Senate adjourned plenary for a day in honour of the chairman of its health committee, Senator Gyang Dantong (PDP, Plateau North), who died during a crisis in Plateau State.

From July 19 to September 18, the Senate went for its annual recess which lasted 62 days. Senate President David Mark said the recess would enable the senators get the much desired rest.

On October 18, the Senate embarked on a 19-day Eid el-Kabir break and resumed plenary on November 6.

On November 29, the Senate adjourned plenary to December 11 mainly for the lawmakers in the various Senate committees to conclude work on the 2013 budget. During the period, chairmen of the 57 standing committees appeared before the Senator Ahmed Maccido-led Senate Committee on Appropriation to defend the budgetary figures presented to them by ministries and agencies.

On December 20, the Senate, after passing the 2013 Appropriation Bill, adjourned for a 27-day Christmas and New Year break to resume on January 16, 2013.
Daily Trust