Nigeria’s National Assembly has been on the receiving end of accusations of incompetence over the years thanks to the many internal and external scandals that members of the assembly have either been embroiled in or implicated in. While many Nigerians have called for the scrapping of one of the chambers especially the house of Representatives with 360 members, these calls have been countered by the assertion that the constitution enshrines the the National Assembly and preserves it as a check and balance to the Nigerian Senate.

However, at every opportunity these legislators never cease to display acts that denigrate their office. So it was on Tuesday November 14, 2017 on the floor of the House of Representatives when an Honourable from Rivers State Kingsley Chinda (PDP) moved a motion for a one minute silence in honour of the late author and environmental activist Mr Ken Saro-Wiwa and his eight other colleagues that were unjustly hanged by the military junta under  the leadership of Late General Sani Abacha twenty-two years ago.

But in a rather sad twist, the motion was rejected by his colleagues on the basis that his death was “lawful” as it was carried out in fulfilment of a government decree. The House of Assembly argued that respecting Mr. Saro-Wiwa’s memory could be construed as taking a decision against an action that was backed up with the “constitution”.

This gaffe by the House of Representatives has shown the lack of moral courage on the part of these individuals and it is more saddening that happened in a chamber filled with former activists who themselves have been unjustly harmed and singled out for abuse by the Nigerian government and as such should understand why the memory of an activist like Mr. Saro-Wiwa should be honored in all spaces.

The likes of Femi Gbajabiamila and Yakubu Dogara who are trained lawyers and privy to the international condemnation and sanctions that Nigeria experienced when this event took place rather chose to keep quiet on a day like November 14 when the wrongs of the past should have been corrected.

Also, the decision of Honourable  members from the South-South, the region bearing the brunt of the environmental negligence Ken Saro-Wiwa and his colleagues were killed for to sit and watch such motion being turned down. They could have staged a walkout from the chambers in protest, but their silence shows complicity and a lack of integrity on their part.

The description of Ken Saro-Wiwa’s killing as a lawful one is a grand conspiracy by individuals that are being enriched from the sufferings of the masses of the Niger Delta, the region which forms the basis of Ken Saro-Wiwa’s Activism.

Once again, the House of Representatives continue to disappoint us.