Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the incoming president, has declared that he hasn’t given his support to anyone for the National Assembly leadership.
He made this statement during a meeting of the All Progressives Congress (APC) national working committee (NWC) with incoming National Assembly members, which took place in the banquet hall of the presidential villa in Abuja.
Since last week’s issuance of certificates of return to the winners of the February 25 parliamentary elections, planning for the Senate presidency and the speakership has reached a peak.
Prior to the 10th assembly’s inauguration in June of this year, candidates for the positions of presiding officers reportedly lobbied their peers, according to the report.
Sani Musa (APC, Niger), Orji Uzor Kalu (APC, Abia), Barau Jibrin (APC, Kano), Godswill Akpabio (APC, Akwa Ibom), and Dave Umahi are among those vying for the Senate president position (APC, Ebonyi).
House Majority Leader Alhassan Ado Doguwa (Kano), House Deputy Speaker Ahmed Idris Wase (Plateau), and Muktar Aliyu Betara (Borno), the chair of the House Appropriations Committee, are all candidates for speaker (Zamfara).
Before the 10th assembly is formally inaugurated, the party leadership is anticipated to announce the zoning of the presiding officers.
The president-elect reportedly informed the lawmakers-elect that he has not endorsed anyone through the vice president-elect, Senator Kashim Shettima, according to a source at the meeting.
“The key issue was that neither the party nor the president-elect had endorsed anyone for any National Assembly positions, and that was the crux of the matter.
“The upcoming state assembly and governor elections on Saturday are our main concern. We urge our elected officials to return to the grassroots and work tirelessly to ensure the victory of our candidates in the upcoming elections, the source said.
After the governorship election, a zoning meeting will be held.
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After the governorship elections, the party would hold a meeting to decide on the zoning of the presiding officers, according to the source.
“The party holds sway. In consultation with President Buhari, the president-elect, the vice president-elect, and other significant stakeholders, the party will, at the appropriate time, deliberate on the pertinent issues and make defensible decisions while taking into account the national interest, the stability of the nation, equity, justice, and fairness, he said.
One of the three reasons for holding the meeting, according to Senator Abdullahi Adamu, national chairman of the APC, was the need to caution incoming members of the National Assembly about jockeying for leadership positions.
“There are a lot of rumors about some of you vying for leadership positions in the national assembly,” he said, referring in particular to social media. That is not unusual. People are free to compete for leadership positions they feel they are eminently qualified for. However, the national working committee of the party does not agree with the approach taken by those running for those positions. it. I don’t. I don’t want to. I don’t want to. I don’t. I want to. I don’t want to.
We would like to issue a warning to everyone in this regard. It may be advantageous to get things going as soon as possible, but sometimes getting things going too quickly can lead to unintended consequences that could damage the party’s morale.
“The president-elect and the party leadership will hold the necessary consultations to come up with a plan for dividing up those positions. I can assure you that whatever sharing arrangement the party and the president-elect come up with will be just, fair, and acceptable to the majority of our members.
In response to inquiries, Borno South senator Ali Ndume (APC) stated that the party leadership had advised them to downplay the leadership issues and concentrate more on making sure “we take the election battle to the end.
We all agreed that the National Assembly members should choose their leaders based on who they believe to be the best candidates while also taking into account the pertinent issues and establishing justice, fairness, and equity. The president-elect will make his choice when the time is right, he said.
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“We will reassemble after the gubernatorial election, take stock of what we have accomplished, and from there, the zoning formula the party wants to adopt will be distributed,” said Senator Mohammed Sani Musa (APC, Niger East).
The National Assembly’s leadership will be discussed after the elections on Saturday, according to House of Representatives Speaker Femi Gbajabiamila.
In 2015, against the wishes of the party leadership, Bukola Saraki and Yakubu Dogara were elected speaker and president of the senate, respectively. According to the report, this year’s meeting is thought to be necessary to prevent a repeat of that situation.