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Akpabio Threatens Legal Action Over Faulty National Assembly Microphones
Senate President Godswill Akpabio has threatened legal action against the contractor responsible for renovating the National Assembly complex over persistent technical faults affecting the microphones in the chambers of both the Senate and the House of Representatives.
Akpabio issued the warning during Wednesday’s plenary after several senators encountered difficulties with malfunctioning microphones while making contributions to debates.
Expressing frustration over the recurring glitches, the Senate President described the situation as an embarrassment to the National Assembly and the country, warning that the legislature would not hesitate to pursue legal remedies if the contractor failed to rectify the defects.
“Distinguished colleagues, I hope you are taking note of the fact that our microphones are not working well. You are taking note of it because I intend to take action,” Akpabio said.
He recalled experiencing a similar situation on Tuesday while representing the Senate at the opening of the National Assembly Week in the House of Representatives, noting that the same contractor handled the renovation of both legislative chambers.
”I was in the House of Representatives yesterday to represent you at the opening of the National Assembly Week and, in the course of it, the Speaker and I were thoroughly embarrassed. The same contractor that handled the renovation of the House of Representatives handled this one,” he said.
Akpabio stressed that the continued failure of the audio system was unacceptable and warned that the National Assembly would invoke legal measures to ensure the contractor delivered work that met the required standard.
“If this continues, we have steps we can take legally to ensure that a good job is done because this is an embarrassment to our nation,” he stated.
He also urged senators to document the recurring failures, saying any decision to sanction the contractor would be based on evidence of the repeated technical problems witnessed during plenary.
”I hope you are taking note of it so that when they go to social media to start complaining after we have taken action, you will know why we took the action. You are all witnessing what is going on now,” Akpabio added.
The recurring microphone failures have disrupted legislative proceedings in both chambers, raising concerns over the quality of the renovation work carried out at the National Assembly complex.