Tension in the All Progressives Congress over the
position of the Senate president deepens. New breaking details emerge
about the situation development.
The Nation reports that ranking will determine who is to become the new head of the Senate, should APC leaders embrace a suggestion by a 12-man delegation pushing Ahmed Lawan.
The APC will meet with senators-elect on June 6 to discuss the issue. The party may allegedly dump its plans to conduct a shadow election to decide on the winner. The major contestants are believed to be Ahmed Lawan and Bukola Saraki.
The 12-member delegation led by Senator Barnabas Gemade met with John Odigie-Oyegun, APC national chairman, on Wednesday night in Abuja. The team included Adamu Aliero, Abdullahi Adamu, Abu Ibrahim, Sola Adeyeye, Gbenga Ashafa, Kabir Gaya, Bukar Abba-Ibrahim, Abdullahi Gumel, Jibrin Barau, Paullen Tallen and Nafiz Suleiman.
A source from the group disclosed:
“We met the national chairman and some of the national officers and demanded that ranking should be followed in choosing the next president of the Senate. This is the convention all over the world.
“We made a case for Lawan-Akume ticket because by ranking, they are the most experienced among the senators-elect.
“We told the party clearly that we have 40 senators-elect behind the Akume-Lawan ticket.”
“At a point, Odigie-Oyegun asked the delegation why Akume was made minority leader in the 7th Senate when Lawan was the most ranking.
“We told the session that Akume was of the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) while Lawan was of the ANPP. The ACN had more senators than the ANPP and it was the lot of the ACN to produce the Minority Leader.”
To explain why they back Lawan for the position, 35 members of the 40-member Unity Forum yesterday signed a letter, in which they informed the party of their support for Lawan-Akume.
“Senator Ahmed Lawan shall be the highest ranking APC Senator and George Akume the second highest ranking APC Senator in the 8th Assembly. This is so as Ahmad Lawan has spent 16 years in the National Assembly; eight years in the House of Representatives and another eight years in the Senate. While Akume has so far spent eight years in the Senate.
“The next behind the duo in terms of ranking who is also in the contest is Senator Abubakar Bukola Saraki who has spent only four years in the Senate. Thus, Senator Ahmad Lawan is the most qualified to be the Senate President while Senator George Akume is the most qualified to be the Deputy Senate President of the 8th Assembly in accordance with Rule 3 Order (2) of the Extant Senate Standing Orders which states as follows;
“Nomination of senators to serve as Presiding Officers and appointments of Principal Officers and other Officers of the Senate or on any Parliamentary delegations shall be in accordance with the ranking of Senators. In determining ranking, the following Oder shall apply-
(i) Senators retiring based on number of times re-elected;
(ii) Senators who had been members of the House of Representatives; and
(iii) Senators elected as Senators for the first time.”
“Since the Northwest zone which gave the APC the highest votes in the 2015 general elections is represented by the President in this government and the Southwest, which gave APC the second highest votes in the same election is represented by the Vice President in this same government, then the Northeast zone which gave the APC the third highest vote in the 2015 general elections should for the sake of equity be allowed to produce the Senate President and the North central Zone which gave the APC the forth highest vote in that election should be allowed to produce the Deputy Senate President.”
The group continued regarding the election “that there were three identified voting blocs that ensured the victory of the APC in the 2015 elections: The Hausa-Fulani bloc, the Yoruba bloc and the Northern minorities bloc.
“Thus, the Hausa-Fulani bloc is represented by the President in this government. The Yoruba bloc is represented by the Vice President. It has therefore become appropriate and equitable that the Northern minorities’ bloc be given the positions of the Senate President and the Deputy Senate President to be occupied by Senators Ahmad Lawan and George Akume respectively who are of Northern minorities.”
The forum concluded that Lawan would “give our compatriots in the Northeast zone a sense of full integration into the heterogenous Nigerian polity.
“That the duo of Senators Lawan and Akume maintained clean records throughout their stint in the public service. This attribute will put them on high moral pedestal to lead the 8th Senate to bring about a corrupt-free Nigeria.”
Meanwhile Senator Saraki yesterday accused the APC the National Working Committee of undue interference in the affairs of the Senate. This comes after the body stated that Lawan fits best for the position based on the five criteria set by Muhammadu Buhari.
Bukola Saraki vs Ahmed Lawan
The Nation reports that ranking will determine who is to become the new head of the Senate, should APC leaders embrace a suggestion by a 12-man delegation pushing Ahmed Lawan.
The APC will meet with senators-elect on June 6 to discuss the issue. The party may allegedly dump its plans to conduct a shadow election to decide on the winner. The major contestants are believed to be Ahmed Lawan and Bukola Saraki.
The 12-member delegation led by Senator Barnabas Gemade met with John Odigie-Oyegun, APC national chairman, on Wednesday night in Abuja. The team included Adamu Aliero, Abdullahi Adamu, Abu Ibrahim, Sola Adeyeye, Gbenga Ashafa, Kabir Gaya, Bukar Abba-Ibrahim, Abdullahi Gumel, Jibrin Barau, Paullen Tallen and Nafiz Suleiman.
A source from the group disclosed:
“We met the national chairman and some of the national officers and demanded that ranking should be followed in choosing the next president of the Senate. This is the convention all over the world.
“We made a case for Lawan-Akume ticket because by ranking, they are the most experienced among the senators-elect.
“We told the party clearly that we have 40 senators-elect behind the Akume-Lawan ticket.”
“At a point, Odigie-Oyegun asked the delegation why Akume was made minority leader in the 7th Senate when Lawan was the most ranking.
“We told the session that Akume was of the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) while Lawan was of the ANPP. The ACN had more senators than the ANPP and it was the lot of the ACN to produce the Minority Leader.”
To explain why they back Lawan for the position, 35 members of the 40-member Unity Forum yesterday signed a letter, in which they informed the party of their support for Lawan-Akume.
“Senator Ahmed Lawan shall be the highest ranking APC Senator and George Akume the second highest ranking APC Senator in the 8th Assembly. This is so as Ahmad Lawan has spent 16 years in the National Assembly; eight years in the House of Representatives and another eight years in the Senate. While Akume has so far spent eight years in the Senate.
“The next behind the duo in terms of ranking who is also in the contest is Senator Abubakar Bukola Saraki who has spent only four years in the Senate. Thus, Senator Ahmad Lawan is the most qualified to be the Senate President while Senator George Akume is the most qualified to be the Deputy Senate President of the 8th Assembly in accordance with Rule 3 Order (2) of the Extant Senate Standing Orders which states as follows;
“Nomination of senators to serve as Presiding Officers and appointments of Principal Officers and other Officers of the Senate or on any Parliamentary delegations shall be in accordance with the ranking of Senators. In determining ranking, the following Oder shall apply-
(i) Senators retiring based on number of times re-elected;
(ii) Senators who had been members of the House of Representatives; and
(iii) Senators elected as Senators for the first time.”
“Since the Northwest zone which gave the APC the highest votes in the 2015 general elections is represented by the President in this government and the Southwest, which gave APC the second highest votes in the same election is represented by the Vice President in this same government, then the Northeast zone which gave the APC the third highest vote in the 2015 general elections should for the sake of equity be allowed to produce the Senate President and the North central Zone which gave the APC the forth highest vote in that election should be allowed to produce the Deputy Senate President.”
The group continued regarding the election “that there were three identified voting blocs that ensured the victory of the APC in the 2015 elections: The Hausa-Fulani bloc, the Yoruba bloc and the Northern minorities bloc.
“Thus, the Hausa-Fulani bloc is represented by the President in this government. The Yoruba bloc is represented by the Vice President. It has therefore become appropriate and equitable that the Northern minorities’ bloc be given the positions of the Senate President and the Deputy Senate President to be occupied by Senators Ahmad Lawan and George Akume respectively who are of Northern minorities.”
The forum concluded that Lawan would “give our compatriots in the Northeast zone a sense of full integration into the heterogenous Nigerian polity.
“That the duo of Senators Lawan and Akume maintained clean records throughout their stint in the public service. This attribute will put them on high moral pedestal to lead the 8th Senate to bring about a corrupt-free Nigeria.”
Meanwhile Senator Saraki yesterday accused the APC the National Working Committee of undue interference in the affairs of the Senate. This comes after the body stated that Lawan fits best for the position based on the five criteria set by Muhammadu Buhari.
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