10th NASS: Concerned APC Stakeholders endorse Akpabio-Barau ticket
Some concerned stakeholders in the ruling All Progressives Congress APC have endorsed the reported zoning of the Senate Presidency to the South South and adoption of Senator Godswill Akpabio as president, insisting that virtually all the states in the South East have at one time or the other produced Senate Presidents irrespective of the duration of their tenures.
The stakeholders also aligned with the decision of a section of the APC National Working Committee NWC to zone the Deputy Senate President slot to the Northwest and specifically for Kano Senator, Jibrin Barau.
Although Barau’s adoption is being opposed by some governors in his zone who are already projecting one of the federal lawmakers for the House Speakership, the stakeholders said a combination of Akpabio and Barau in the Senate Presidency would engineer a successful Bola Tinubu administration.
Convener of the stakeholders, Comrade Okpokwu Ogenyi, at a news conference on Saturday in Abuja said votes delivery in the last presidential election is a factor that must be considered in picking the presiding officers of the National Assembly.
He said; “We are aware that zoning is not done in a vacuum, so we highly recommend Senator Godswill Akpabio for the position of Senate President and Senator Barau Jibrin as Deputy Senate President respectively. This will go a long way in building the confidence of APC members across the country in preparation for the future of our great party, the APC.
“It is pertinent to note that, in the South, South-South contributed the second highest votes after South-West which house the President-elect. The North-West gave the party the highest votes in the North with Kano state consistently giving APC the highest vote per state in every election since the formation of the APC.
“In the National Assembly, Senator Akpabio is the most ranking senator from the South-South under the platform of the APC while Senator Barau Jibrin is the most ranking senator from the North West.
“We sincerely appeal to the National Chairman of our great Party, Sen Abdullahi Adamu, and his National Working Committee members to zone the Senate Presidency seat to the South-South and the Deputy Senate President to the North West, preferably micro-zoned to Akwa Ibom State and Deputy Senate President to Kano State to pave way for the most ranking Senators, Godswill Akpabio and Barau I. Jibrin to emerge as the Senate President and Deputy Senate President of the 10th Senate respectively.
“We unequivocally call on the President-elect Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the Progressives Governor’s Forum PGF and the State chairmen of our party to implement a government of National competence by supporting the zoning of the Senate Presidency to the South-South and Deputy to the North West.
“To this end, this organisation is publicly making this appeal to our leaders while official letters will be sent to our party’s National Chairman and the President-elect respectively in this regard.
We shall continue to advocate for good governance in promoting the ideology of our great party, APC”.
Meanwhile, indications emerged at the weekend that at least three governors from the Northwest are opposed to having the deputy senate presidency slot zoned to them, preferring instead to have the House Speakership.
An aide to one of the governors who spoke on condition of anonymity, said it is not as if the governors do not like Senator Barau but that they are fighting for the larger interest of the zone.
He said; “Our governors are not exactly opposed to Barau as a person. They are only concerned about the interest of the zone. It is their valid opinion that having the Speakership zoned to the Northwest is better than having the deputy senate president. We would prefer that the DSP slot is given to the North Central, preferably Senator Sani Musa and then they should allow the Northwest Governors to recommend one of their lawmakers for Speaker”.
The aide however said there is an underground battle of wits between the Northwest and some influential stakeholders from the Northeast who insist on also having the Speakership in the person of Hon. Muktar Betara.
In a related development, a group known as Southeast APC Vanguard has called on the President-elect, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu and the Senator Abdullahi Adamu-led National Working Committee NWC to discard any zoning arrangement that excludes the South East from the 10th NASS leadership.
Leader of the group, Felix Oliji said the hostile environment in which APC leaders had to canvass for votes in the South East was not their making. He said in spite of that, many of the leaders especially in Imo and Ebonyi state still performed greatly for the party.
Noting that Imo has become a traditional APC state, Oliji said the Imo North Senator-elect, Patrick Ndubueze should be considered for the Senate Presidency.
He said; “Ndubueze has been consistent and had often been cheated out of the senatorial race. This time, despite the wave made by ‘Obidients’, he was able to win the election in a way that his opponent would be wasting his time by going to the tribunal.
“As a former member of the House of Representatives, the ranking requirement also favours him. Among the lot, he is the only one who commands the respect of the various political tendencies in the APC”, Oliji added.
