The House of Representatives yesterday stepped down all the bills transmitted from the Senate for concurrence in the Green Chamber. The Reps protested against the Upper House’s delay of 146 bills they had sent to them.

The resolution was taken after heated debates on what was termed undue delay of bills transmitted to the Senate for concurrence. Consequently, the House stepped down two bills sponsored by Senate Leader, Opeyemi Bamidele.

The resolution followed the motion raised by Minority Leader, Kingsley Chinda, when asked to send a bill seeking to amend the Federal Orthopaedic Hospital Management Act. NAN reports that the amendment act seeks to establish a Federal Orthopaedic Hospital at Obokun in Osun State.

House Leader, Julius Ihonvbere, also moved a motion to step down the second bill which sought to establish the Federal University of Medicine and Medical Sciences in Egbe, Kogi.

However, there was a rowdy session when Chinda was called by Speaker Abbas Tajudeen to second the motion for second reading. Chinda frowned on the “uncooperative disposition” of the Senate toward the bills transmitted by the house for concurrence.

He said: “I regret that the Senate has failed in that regard, but we don’t get that same treatment at the Senate.” Contributing, AwajiIniombek Abiante said that he had two bills pending for concurrence at the Senate.

Affirming the non-reciprocity of the senate toward the bills by the House, Tajudeen described the development as “very worrisome”. He said: “From what the Clerk told me, we have 146 bills that are with the Senate. “I have more than 10 bills; some are there for more than six months; no attention.

“We don’t know what is really happening. We don’t know what is happening. Let me allow one or two people to speak and then we will take a decision concerning that.” Consequently, he ruled that bills from the Senate would receive the same treatment from the house, unless there were cogent reasons for any delay.