Before Tuesday’s election of the 10th National Assembly’s presiding officers, Hon. Yekini Nabena, a former deputy national publicity secretary of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), said that current political developments have additionally strengthened the case for why the South-South geopolitical zone ought to produce the subsequent Senate President.
Nabena responded to President Bola Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima’s intervention on Sunday night, which resulted in the withdrawal of two of the highest candidates for Speaker of the 10th Assembly.
Hon. Muktar Betara Aliyu from the North-East and Hon. Yusuf Gagdi from the North-Central withdrew from rivalry for the place of Speaker of the 10th Assembly and supported Hon. Tajuddeen Abbas as a substitute, who was the favoured candidate of the social gathering from the North-west.
In a press release made public on Monday in Abuja, Nabena claimed that it has develop into more and more apparent that the North can not concurrently maintain the places of work of the Vice President, Speaker, Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), and Senate President.
The politician from Bayelsa contends that as a result of Nigeria is a secular state, the problem of a Muslim-Muslim ticket for the President and Vice President ought to be taken under consideration and serve to assist Senator Godshill Akpabio, the only candidate from the South-South, as the subsequent Senate President.
The APC chief declared: “I shall attraction to all of the senators-elect to unite beneath Akpabio to develop into the subsequent President for equality, justice, and equity.
“This has develop into needed as a result of the 2 main contenders within the race for the place of Speaker have withdrawn and declared their assist for Hon. Tajudeen Abbas, which signifies that the street is sort of clear for the emergence of one other Muslim from the North as quantity 4 citizen.
Therefore, there’s a want for spiritual balancing in authorities and for the truth that solely South-south will probably be omitted of the equation if the place of Senate President eludes the area, therefore the extra motive Senators-elect ought to rally assist for Senator Godshill Akpabio as the subsequent Senate President.
As it stands today, the South-west has produced the President, the North-east has the Vice President, the North-west is about to produce the Speaker, (Note that the three of them are Muslims), the North-central has the SGF and the South-east to produce the Deputy Speaker. So, where is the South-south?” he queried.
Nabena enjoined the North “to forgive Senator Akpabio if he has done anything wrong in the past for the sake of national unity and religious harmony by allowing the former Akwa Ibom Governor to emerge as the next Senate President.”
