The Nigerian Senate and the House of Representatives on Tuesday differed over bills for establishment of Federal University of Sports.
There was clear departure on the bills, while the Senate through its Chairman on Sports and Youths Development, Senator Obinna Ogba ( PDP Ebonyi Central), sponsored a bill to that effect, considered and passed for third reading on December 7, 2021, the House came up with a different version of the bill and sought for concurrence of the Senate.
Trouble for the bill came up when it was to be considered for concurrence by Senate during plenary on Tuesday.
Senator Obinna Ogba who earlier in the 8th National Assembly, sponsored and saw to the passage of the bill before repeating same in the 9th Senate, drew the attention of the Senate President, Ahmad Lawan to the bill already passed for third reading in the Senate.
He said “Mr President, out of the six bills forwarded to us from the House of Representatives for concurrence, the one listed as number four, seeking for establishment of Federal University of Sports, Afuze in Edo State, runs contrary to the earlier one passed in the Senate.
“This bill as sponsored by me, had been given the required legislative consideration by the Senate with second reading in May 2021 and third reading in December 2021.
“In the version considered and passed by the Senate, NKalagu in Ebonyi State is proposed as location for the University and not Afuze, proposed by the House version.
“It is the House that supposed to concur to what the Senate had earlier passed and not the other way round with this request which should be stepped down “, he said .
Meanwhile, the Senate President stepped down the bill from further consideration until required harmonization is carried out between the two chambers.
