The Nigerian House of Representatives has rejected what they described as “inferior”, President Bola Tinubu’s decision to confer on the Speaker of the House, Tajudeen Abbas, with a CFR national honour. Members of the House say they want the Speaker to receive the same GCON award the President conferred on the President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio.
The House established an ad-hoc committee, chaired by House Leader Julius Ihonvbere, comprising leaders from both northern and southern caucuses, among others, to liaise with the Presidency and propose amendments to the National Honours Act of 1964 to appropriately recognise the Speaker of the House of Representatives as a co-head of the National Assembly.
The committee was also tasked with ensuring that the Presidency confers the national honour of GCON on the Speaker, similar to the recognition given to the President of the Senate, and to complete this before the formal decoration by President Tinubu.
This development followed the adoption of a motion of urgent public importance titled “Inappropriate Discrimination Against the House of Representatives and the Presentation of the Chamber as Inferior to the Senate,” moved by Hon. Philip Agbese (APC, Benue) and 235 other members.
In presenting the motion, Agbese stated that the National Assembly is constitutionally established as a bicameral legislature, comprising two equal chambers—the Senate and the House of Representatives—as stipulated in Section 4 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended), with both chambers operating within a framework that ensures legislative independence and equality.
He noted that Section 47 of the 1999 Constitution established the National Assembly, which consists of a Senate and a House of Representatives, each playing distinct but complementary legislative roles.
The lawmaker expressed concern at the ongoing and inappropriate culture of discrimination against the House, which is often portrayed as inferior to the Senate. This is perpetuated by language that consistently refers to the Senate as the “upper chamber” and the House of Representatives as the “lower chamber,” misrepresenting the legal status of both chambers and diminishing the standing of the House.
He raised concerns about the increasing trend of referring to the President of the Senate as the “Chairman of the National Assembly,” which inaccurately implies a hierarchical structure between the two chambers, contrary to the Constitution, and undermines the authority of the Speaker of the House of Representatives.
Agbese highlighted that this discriminatory practice was again evident during the recent conferment of National Honours on the leadership of the National Assembly by the President.
“While expressing our gratitude to Mr President for recognising and honouring the leadership of the National Assembly, we note that the conferment of the title of Grand Commander of the Order of the Niger (GCON) on the President of the Senate and the conferment of the Commander of the Federal Republic (CFR) on the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the Deputy President of the Senate perpetuates the inappropriate subordination of the Speaker to the President of the Senate.
“The Chief Justice of Nigeria, who ranks lower in protocol than the Speaker of the House of Representatives, was also awarded the title of GCON, further exemplifying this culture of discrimination against the leadership of the House.
“The National Honours Act of 1964 does not explicitly prescribe the conferment of specific honours, such as the Grand Commander of the Order of the Niger (GCON) for the President of the Senate or the Commander of the Order of the Federal Republic (CFR) for the Speaker of the House of Representatives. These distinctions are rooted in customary practice rather than statutory requirement,” the Deputy House Spokesperson added.
In support of the motion, Hon. Sada Soli (APC, Katsina) maintained that the Speaker, as the fourth citizen of the nation, should be honoured with GCON instead of CFR, questioning why the Chief Justice of Nigeria would be honoured with GCON while the Speaker received CFR.
He stated: “We know the President is a listening President. We know the President is not shy; he does not shy away from correcting issues. Mr Speaker, the House of Representatives should hold the honour of GCON.”
In his contribution, Hon. Babajimi Benson (APC, Lagos) described the action as an injustice to the institution of the House, asserting that while this has persisted for too long, it remains an institutional error.
He remarked, “This motion cannot be overturned at any time. I thank the 360 members who also support this motion for putting democracy right. Injustice to one is injustice to all. This injustice has gone on for too long. It is not something that has occurred only in this administration; it is an institutional error.
“Mr. Speaker, I want to remind members that when this administration is formed, the Speaker ranks fourth, preceding the Chief Justice of Nigeria. How can the Chief Justice receive the GCON honour while the Speaker receives the CFR honour?
“Moreover, in a comparative analysis of the system of government of the United States of America, if something were to happen to both the President and the Vice President simultaneously, guess who is in line to become the President of America? It is not the Senate President or the leader of the Senate; it is the Speaker of the House of Representatives.”
