Upon the Senators’ return to the newly renovated Chamber for legislative activities, the National Assembly Sergeant-At-Arms took steps to prevent more than 10 television stations in the country from entering the gallery.
An operative of the Sergeant-At-Arms stationed at the Chamber entrance informed journalists that Senate President Godswill Akpabio had directed the security unit to limit the number of media houses permitted to cover the proceedings.
A document signed by the Clerk of the Senate, Chinedu Akubueze, was observed by NewsNow at the chamber entrance, listing only seven media houses authorized to cover proceedings.
The accredited media houses include the Nigeria Television Authority (NTA), Channels, African Independent Television (AIT), Television Continental (TVC), Arise News, Newage, and ADBN.
Meanwhile, the Press Corps leadership had a meeting last week with the Clerk of the Senate to address issues related to media coverage of Senate proceedings.
Journalists covering the National Assembly have expressed surprise at the Senate’s decision to prevent certain TV stations from covering plenary sessions while discussions on the matter were still ongoing.