Arise Television Morning Show anchor, Rufai Oseni, has explained why Senate President Godswill Akpabio rejected being addressed as Nigeria’s acting president while President Bola Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima were outside the country.

Oseni made the comments on Monday while analysing Tinubu’s extended stay abroad.

According to him, Akpabio’s insistence that he was not the acting president suggested that the Senate President was unwilling to assert the powers of the National Assembly as a co-equal arm of government.

Oseni also questioned whether the National Assembly would effectively challenge the executive, citing its support for the declaration of a state of emergency in Rivers State.

He recalled that some political associates had referred to Akpabio as acting president while Tinubu and Shettima were away, prompting the Senate President to publicly clarify that he did not hold the position.

“This was because while President Tinubu and Vice President Shettima were away, some of the political surrogates of Akpabio were already calling him acting president. So he needed to exonerate himself,” Oseni said.

He argued that the legislature was constitutionally intended to function as a co-equal arm of government and questioned whether Akpabio could lead the National Assembly in challenging executive decisions.

Oseni also criticised the National Assembly’s earlier endorsement of the Rivers State emergency declaration, saying it raised questions about its willingness to check executive power.

He referenced the principle of separation of powers, arguing that the legislature should exercise its constitutional responsibilities independently.