According to reports, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, the president-elect, requested that the Senate President position for the 10th National Assembly be allocated to the south rather than being zoned to the south south. He reportedly made this request to the leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
According to reports, Tinubu, APC leaders, and a few National Assembly members discussed this on Wednesday in relation to the zoning of the leadership of the upcoming 10th National Assembly.
Three South West senators and several APC leadership members reportedly requested that the Senate Presidency be assigned to the South-South, but Tinubu flatly refused their proposal.
10th NASS: Tinubu Meets Izunaso Behind Closed Doors Over Senate Presidency
The President-elect, according to sources cited by The Sun, argued that it was incorrect to propose zoning the position of Senate President to the South-South only because doing so would allow all qualified candidates from the South East and South-South to participate in a fair election, just as APC delegates chose the party’s presidential candidate without microzoning prior to the election.
According to reports, Tinubu advised attendees of the conference that the southern area, and not only the south south, should be permitted to run for the Senate President position in the sake of fairness, equity, religious balance, and regional harmony.
An impeccable source privy to the meeting said: “The plot to have a sole South-South candidate by zoning the office to the zone failed flat with President-elect, who, in his wisdom, rejected pressures by some members of the party leadership and the Southwest senators for the zoning of the Senate presidency to the South-South.
“There’s no truth in all that was reported in the media that the President and the NWC have settled for South-South. The President insisted that the position should be zoned to the South region.”
10th NASS Leadership: Tinubu, APC May Opt For Consensus Senate President, Speaker
According to additional information, Godswill Akpabio is pushing for the microzoning of the Senate President seat to the south south in order to increase his chances of winning the office.
It was learned that the Akwa Ibom senator would become the only candidate if the proposal had been approved because he is the highest ranked APC senator from the region.
Additionally, a senator-elect who spoke on the condition of anonymity claimed that, in contrast to what the three senators from the South West claimed, the majority of elected representatives from the region as well as other senators had lined up behind Senator Orji Uzor Kalu, who is currently the Chief Whip of the Senate and is from the South East geopolitical zone.
He added that they back Senator Sani Musa’s bid for vice president of the senate.
He claimed that certain senators from the Southwest attempted to persuade Tinubu that the region had chosen Akpabio, but the President-elect determined that wasn’t the case after conducting his own inquiry.
10th NASS: Why I’m Best Candidate For Senate Presidency – Orji Uzor Kalu
He said: “The three senators from South West lied to the president-elect Tuesday night that all of them from the zone were supporting Akpabio for Senate President, but Asiwaju couldn’t be fooled. He cross-checked the claim by reaching out to the other senators-elect only to discover it was untrue.
“As South-westerners, we have a good relationship with all Nigerians and these three senators cannot speak for us. They are not our leaders and cannot take South West senators for granted. Our leader is a former governor who is also a senator.
“For us, we have resolved to do the right thing for the country since it’s the only way Asiwaju (president-elect) can succeed as president. We have chosen to support fairness and justice as this country is built on a tripod – Hausa, Igbo and Yoruba.
“We are happy that the president-elect did not listen to them because he is not petty. He likes fairness and he wants to do the right thing. The 12 senators from the South West already have a preferred candidate. We have 11 senators and one ranking senator who have endorsed Senator Orji Uzor Kalu for president and Senator Sani Musa for Deputy Senate President.
APC To Meet With Newly Elected Senators And Representatives On Monday
“The northern senators and southern senators believe in the leadership of these two senators and there is no going back. The good news is that Asiwaju has a strong character and will stand firm on his personal convictions.”
Follow us on Facebook
Post Disclaimer
The opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by the author and forum participants on this website do not necessarily reflect the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints of Anaedo Online or official policies of the Anaedo Online.