Elder statesmen in the country yesterday waded into the crisis trailing the race for the leadership of the National Assembly, calling for more consultations ahead of the June 13 inauguration of the 10th Assembly.
The senior citizens who lent their voices in the matter are former presidential liaison officer,Tanko Yakassi, former Ogun State governorm Segun Osoba, and former Senate President Ameh Ebute.
The leaders who spoke at a gathering of non-serving s’Senators of the All Progressives Congress (APC) underscored the need for a stable federal legislature as the President Bola Tinubu administration begins.
Our sister newspaper, LEADERSHIP, had earlier reported that some northern and southern leaders were being engaged to intervene in the raging battle for the leadership of the National Assembly.
The intervention of the elder statesmen comes as the APC Non-Serving Senators Group from Second to Fourth Republics, called on Senator Orji Uzor Kalu, ex-Governor Abdul’Aziz Yari, Osita Izunaso and other aspirants for the position of Senate President in the 10th National Assembly to respect party’s decision on the matter as its supremacy.
The ex-senators spoke at an enlarged meeting attended by critical stakeholders, which included Chief Olusegun Osoba, Alhaji Tanko Yakasai, Ambassador Godknows Igali and Archbishop John Praise, among others.
Recall that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the National Working Committee (NWC) of the APC had zoned the Senate President position to the South-South and specifically endorsed Senator Godswill Akpabio as its candidate with Senator Barau Jibrin as deputy.
But Yari, Kalu, Izunaso and others have objected to the action of the APC leadership and vowed to contest against the Akpabio/Jibrin ticket on inauguration day of the 10th National Assembly slated for June 13, 2023.
Speaking at the enlarged meeting of the APC Non-Serving Senators Group and stakeholders in Abuja, APC stakeholders like Osoba, Yakasai, among others, called on the group to reach out to senators-elect opposing the position of the party to respect the APC constitution and support Akpabio and Jibrin.
Osoba in his comment, urged the APC non-serving senators to lobby other aspirants to ensure that the zoning of the positions stands.
Osoba said, “I want to appeal to you on two issues. Let us all organise a serious lobby system by convening a meeting of all aspirants for the position of Senate President in 10th Senate to make them see reason why they should toe the line of the party.
“The party has decided on zoning and has zoned the positions. We cannot afford to start this government in another crisis. The fuel subsidy removal crisis is already there.
“Let us go back to our states and lobby our senators-elect to support the choices of the party. With this I believe we shall achieve our goal without any hitch.”
Former Senate President, Ameh Ebute, called on all APC senators-elect to respect the supremacy of the party as enshrined in its constitution.
After reading a section of the APC’s Constitution which provides that the party is supreme, Ebute said: “The party is supreme. No member should oppose the constitution of the party and position of its leadership. We should abide by the constitution of the party and the zoning of National Assembly leadership positions by the party.”
On his part, elder statesman Alhaji Tanko Yakasai, said he had no doubts that Akpabio was qualified to hold the position of Senate President because of his pedigree.
Yakasai said, “The time of paucity of qualified Nigerians is over many years ago. This is the reason for my difficulties in the task of giving a talk in a gathering like this.
“What made my task somewhat easier is the fact that we know the personality we are all talking about.
“The person is no other than one of the few among the multitudes of people we know who is privileged to occupy three important positions many of our compatriots will wish to occupy any time such an opportunity presents itself to them.
“The personality is no other than a one-time governor of his state, a one time minister and presently a senator-elect of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, my popular, competent and amiable Senator Godswill Apkabio.
“Senator Akpabio is now presenting himself for consideration and support to be elected the President of the Senate.”
In his comments, Ambassador Godknows Igali, said the South-South was grateful to the APC for zoning the position of Senate President to the zone for the purpose of equity, fairness and justice.
“Let us move to lobby our colleagues to support the choice of the party for Senate President to enable our new government to hit the ground running,” Igali said.
However, convener of the meeting, Senator Basheer Lado, called on the aspirants in opposition to the party’s choices not to repeat the mistakes of the past.
He called on them to withdraw their bids in the interest of peace, party cohesion and the smooth takeoff of Tinubu administration.
In his address, Senator Lado said the enlarged meeting became imperative for the group to reaffirm its support for the party’s position that the President of the Senate and his deputy should come from the southern and northern parts of the country respectively as a measure of balancing and stabilising our polity.
Lado said: “We are equally convinced that there is a need now more than ever to support the party and strengthen its decision in this regard.
“We are convinced that a strong party capable of whipping its members into line stands a better chance to oversee its members in the executive and legislative branches of government and ensure thereby that the party manifesto and governance philosophy are religiously observed and executed.
“We were all witnesses to the dislocation that occurred when the legislators rebelled against the party and the president to install their own officers against the position of the party during the first four years of the immediate-past administration and the last four years of the administration before it.
“Such a scenario immediately breeds an in-house opposition where the party works against itself. It does not bear stating that a lot of time and resources are usually lost in an effort to convince fellow party members to push forward with the programmes of the party.”
He continued, “As key players in our party and nation, we are also aware that, in addition to the need for political harmony, regional balancing, and respect for religious plurality, Senators Godswill Akpabio and Barau Jibrin are not only ranking senators but also possess the necessary leadership skills.
“With Senators Akpabio and Barau Jibrin in charge of the 10th Senate, there is no doubt that the National Assembly would provide the necessary synergy to His Excellency Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration to ensure that all Nigerians benefit from good governance and democratic dividends.
“We, therefore, call on all your stakeholders to support this patriotic move. In the interest of Nigeria’s national stability, peace, and party cohesion,we equally request once again that other aspirants withdraw their candidacies,” he said.
Meanwhile, the uncertainty surrounding the candidates of the APC has not abated, if indications from the meeting between Tinubu and the Senate President Ahmed Lawan and Speaker Femi Gbajabiamila is anything to go by.
A source, knowledgeable about the outcome of the meeting, said the Senate President raised concerns over the impasse trailing the APC’s choice for the top positions.
The source said “It was today at the meeting the president got to know that he was either misinformed or distorted pieces of information were handed to him in respect of the national assembly leadership.
“It is cheering that the Senate president boldly but politely told the president that there is fire on the mountain. He gave the man the real situation of things and even protested that he was excluded when the Speaker was putting permutations together in respect of the National Assembly leadership of which he is chairman.
“The Senate president was very truthful with the president that if things are allowed to go on the way they are, two dangerous scenarios await the APC. He said it is either APC loses the speakership to the opposition PDP if two APC aspirants run for speakership or the north corners both the speakership and senate presidency.
“So, all indications point to the fact that the issue of leadership scout for 10th assembly was largely mismanaged by the speaker and his so-called trusted allies in the 9th Assembly,” the source added.
Briefing State House correspondents after the meeting, Lawan said the president emphasized that the emergence will be for the national interest, interest of the National Assembly and the legislature adding that ‘everybody matters in this process.’
Lawan said, “We are getting somewhere and I pray that we are able to resolve all the outstanding issues by the grace of God. And Mr President is positively disposed to everything being done smoothly.
“We also believe that Mr. President having been a senator himself and his vice president also having been a senator, this is something that they will always wish and pray for.
As the chairman of the 9th National Assembly, he said that he found it dutiful and necessary to work with all the major stakeholders, especially the leadership of our country.
Lawan explained that Mr President particularly gave his necessary opinion and advice on how the new leadership of the National Assembly should emerge and what they needed to do to ensure stability, productivity of the National Assembly and to ensure a peaceful atmosphere between the legislature and the executive arm of government.
“I have never indicated interest to run for the office of the president of the senate in the 10 National Assembly. We have worked together with distinguished senators of the 9th national assembly and members of the House of Representatives to create a very Clement environment for us to work.
“We have been productive, much more productive than any National Assembly. We have worked very closely with the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari and of course that helped the administration also.
“My prayer and wish and hope is that we are able to have a peaceful transition to a new set of leaders of the National Assembly and who will continue to unite everybody in the National Assembly, in the senate,” the Senate President said.
According to him they want to have a leadership in the senate that will unite senators to work so well regardless of their political parties, the same thing in the House of Representatives.
“But the truth is I have never indicated interest to run but I have a responsibility to the Senate, the National Assembly having been in the National Assembly for 24 years now, especially when we have 70 percent of members in the National Assembly.
“Those of us who have been there longer, owe everybody that responsibility to at least help mentoring those who are new if we are not going to be presiding officers or principal positions,” he said.
The Senate President who said he did not wish to be one of the principal officers, added that he had played his part and was happy that they have played their part, they have made a positive impact.
But of course, “we have had our fair share of shortcomings but I can hold my head high on behalf of all my colleagues in the Senate and the National Assembly that this National Assembly have contributed to national development in no mean measure and have succeeded in getting very critical legislation passed and assented to by the former president,” Lawan said.
