Daily Digest Online

A lighthearted moment occurred on the floor of the Nigerian Senate on Tuesday when Senate President Godswill Akpabio announced the birthday of a colleague with whom he has a publicly known dispute. During the session, Akpabio observed a Senate tradition of recognizing lawmakers celebrating their birthdays. December 9th marked the birthdays of both Akpabio himself and Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan. A video from the chamber shows senators bursting into laughter as Akpabio, after announcing his own name, pauses before referring to "another person, Distinguished Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan." The humorous reaction from the chamber is noted in the context of the known political and legal tensions between the Senate President and Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan, who are currently engaged in a court case.

As U.S. visa bans and sharp criticism from Washington ripple through Abuja, Nigeria’s Senate insists on rigorous scrutiny for top security nominees. The ornate chamber of Nigeria’s Senate was humming with the usual procedural murmur on Tuesday—until the debate over confirming a new Minister of Defence turned into a pointed lesson on geopolitical timing. Senator Mohammed Sani Musa, following a tradition often extended to former service chiefs, suggested that the nominee, former Chief of Defence Staff General Christopher Musa, should simply “bow and go”—a parliamentary shorthand for bypassing rigorous questioning and granting immediate confirmation. But Senate President Godswill Akpabio swiftly gaveled the easy pass into oblivion. In a sharp, impromptu rebuke that quieted the room, Akpabio framed the moment in stark, contemporary terms. “This is not the time for politics of ‘bow and go’,” he declared, his voice carrying a mix of frustration and urgency...