This is not the first time Mr Akpabio would be stirring controversy on the floor of the senate.
The President of the Nigerian senate, Godswill Akpabio, has made a gaffe during plenary when he mistakenly revealed that money has been sent to senators to 'enjoy' their recess.
A video clip showing Mr Akpabio making the blunder has gone viral on social media.
The clip surfaced on Wednesday.
The incident reportedly happened on Monday after the senators concluded the screening and confirmation of President Bola Tinubu's ministerial nominees.
The senators later adjourned plenary to 26 September.
The gaffe
Mr Akpabio, who forgot that the proceeding was being streamed live, began to address his colleagues before adjournment motion was moved at the end of the Senate's ministerial screening.
"In order to enable all of us to enjoy our holidays, a token has been sent to our various accounts by the Clerk of the National Assembly," he said.
The senate president was immediately informed by his colleagues that he was speaking on live television.
Upon realising the seriousness of his remarks, he quickly announced its withdrawal.
"I withdraw that statement," he said.
"In order to allow you to enjoy your holiday, the senate president has sent prayers to your mailboxes to assist you to go on a safe journey and return," Mr Akpabio rephrased the comment, apparently to correct what was considered an embarrassment.
The amount that was sent to the senators remains unknown. However, the salaries and allowances of National Assembly members are often shrouded in secrecy.
The 'holiday' allowance Mr Akpabio said was paid to lawmakers is unknown to the law. The remuneration package approved for lawmakers by the Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMARC) has no 'holiday' allowance or token provision.
But the lawmakers are entitled to recess allowance under the law, which is 10 per cent of the annual basic salary of each legislator, and is paid once a year.
Mr Akpabio may have, in his comment, referred to that 'recess allowance' as "holiday allowance".
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However, Nigerian lawmakers are infamous for drawing illegal allowances from public funds and padding annual budgets to enrich themselves illegally.
The latest development comes amid nationwide economic hardship caused by the removal of fuel subsidy.
Last week, the Nigeria Labour Congress, the Trade Union Congress and other affiliate unions, held a nationwide protest against the removal of fuel subsidy and the attendant economic hardship in Nigeria.
Not the first time
This is not the first time Mr Akpabio would be stirring controversy on the floor of the senate.
There was outrage, last month, when the senate president was filmed on live TV making light of the "Let The Poor Breathe," phrase which is often used by Nigerians to criticise the current hardship in the country.
