Assistant Politics Editor, DANIEL KANU, looks at the politics, intrigues that played out during the election of eighth NASS leadership.
In what could aptly be described as a perfectly hatched coup d’etat, Senator Bukola Saraki and Hon. Yakubu Dogara on Tuesday defied all hurdles in their way, particularly by their party, the All Progressives Congress (APC), as they emerged Senate President and House of Representatives Speaker.
Saraki defeated his rival, Senator Ahmed Lawan, who was not even present on the floor of the Senate during the voting exercise, to clinch the position unopposed.
At the lower house, Dogara beat his rival, Femi Gbajabiamila, in a tight contest that was won by just eight votes. It was a contest that was characterised by well-teleguided strategy and skilful guile.
This is the first time in the past 16 years of the rebirth of democracy in the country that the president of the Senate and the deputy would be elected from two opposing political parties.
More questions have been thrown up about the way the plot that produced them was hatched.
In a manner that left many watchers of political events dumbfounded, the table of parliamentary control was turned in favour of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), a minority platform, while the APC, a party that was thought to be firmer in enforcing party supremacy, lost the garb of party discipline.
But their victory would not have been achieved without the masterstroke of the PDP, which, by its decision to adopt both men and pair Saraki with Senator Ike Ekweremadu as his deputy, enabled PDP to exact its pound of flesh from the APC.
Saraki’s emergence was then followed by the election of Ekweremadu as the Deputy Senate President.
Ekweremadu has held the office for eight years in the sixth and seventh Senate when Senator David Mark held sway as the Senate president.
APC has 59 senators following the death of Senator Ahmad Zannah (Borno Central) in May, while PDP has 49.
By the Senate Rules, only 38 senators or one third of the senators need to be present to form a quorum.
In the House of Representatives of 360 members, the APC has a comfortable majority of not less than 214 members, the PDP about 130, with Labour Party (LP), All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) and Accord Party (AP) sharing the remaining seats.
TheNiche predicted in its June 7 edition that “one single breath may be all that is needed for the APC to implode into factions when the eight National Assembly is inaugurated on Tuesday, June 9”.
The reason, according to this weekly, was that “The APC has a slim majority of 10 in the Senate. If its ranks are divided between Saraki and Lawan, and the PDP puts all its votes in one baskets, it could carry the day.”
PDP had suffered a similar fate in the lower house when in 2011 lawmakers on the platform of the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) rallied round Aminu Tambuwal and Emeka Ihedioha to defy the zoning formula of the PDP to emerge speaker and deputy speaker in the House.
Saraki and Dogara’s defiance
The stage was set for the epic battle when Saraki and Dogara rejected APC’s adoption of Lawan and Gbajabiamila as the choice of the ruling party for the leadership posts in the National Assembly.
It was the party’s decision to throw up Lawan and Gbajabiamila that led to a schism among APC lawmakers, enabling the PDP to capitalise on the division to determine the outcome of present NASS leadership.
The outcome of the election is believed in most political quarters to have handed the national leader of APC, Bola Tinubu, a bloody nose as well as deflated his influence and political myth after his failed attempt to impose his chosen ones as candidates to lead the National Assembly.
Ekweremadu resurfaces
The emergence of Ekweremadu was said to be a fall-out of the tough negotiations between Saraki and PDP senators. The latter, mainly from the South South and South East, had alleged that the pair of Lawan and Senator George Akume gave them no sense of belonging because it was a North North ticket.
Hence, they promised to offer Saraki their total support if he would concede the office of the Deputy Senate President to them in view of the closeness of their numbers to that of the ruling APC, which has the majority membership. It was a deal that worked.
Buhari stands aloof
Buhari at different fora had said he would not interfere in anyway or in anything undemocratic. This political observers say he demonstrated in action.
A statement issued by his media aide, Femi Adesina, said Buhari would have loved if the process of electing the leaders as initiated and concluded by the APC had been followed. Nonetheless, the report added that Buhari was of the view that a constitutional process had somewhat occurred.
“President Buhari had said in an earlier statement that he did not have any preferred candidate for the Senate and the House of Representatives, and that he was willing to work with whoever the lawmakers elected,” the statement said.
“That sentiment still stands. Though he (Buhari) would have preferred the new leaders to have emerged through the process established by the party.”
The statement stressed, however, that the stability of the nation’s constitutional order and overall interest of the common man were uppermost on the president’s mind as far as the National Assembly elections were concerned.
The president has called on all the elected representatives of the people to focus on the enormous task of bringing enduring positive changes to the lives of Nigerians.
APC kicks
While reacting to the elections in the National Assembly, APC said what happened was “totally unacceptable and the highest level of indiscipline and treachery”.
In a statement issued by its national spokesperson, Lai Mohammed, the party said it would summon an emergency meeting of its leadership to mete out the necessary sanctions to all those involved in the show of deceit and indiscipline.
“‘Senator Bukola and Hon. Dogara are not the candidates of the APC and choice of a majority of its National Assembly members-elect for the positions of Senate President and House Speaker.
“The party duly met and conducted a straw poll and clear candidates emerged for the posts of Senate President, Deputy Senate President and Speaker of the House of Representatives, supported by a majority of all senators-elect and members-elect of the House of Representatives.
“All National Assembly members-elect who emerged on the platform of the party were bound by that decision. The party is supreme and its interest is superior to that of its individual members,” the party said.
Lamenting further, APC decried a situation in which some people, based on nothing but inordinate ambition and lack of discipline and loyalty, would enter into an unholy alliance with the very same people whom the party and indeed the entire country worked hard to replace and sell out the hard-won victory of the party.
“There can be no higher level of treachery, disloyalty and insincerity within any party,” the party said, vowing to deal with the matter using all constitutional and legal means available to it.
But party leaders seem to be divided in the choice of Saraki and Lawan for the Senate presidency, as well as that of Dogara and Gbajabiamila for House of Representatives speakership.
Although APC statement said the party has rejected the new leadership, other camps within the party see the medium as only speaking the minds of the Tinubu’s group because some of the party leaders, and even the presidency, do not agree with the position.
Both Lawan and Gbajabiamila were seen as candidates of Tinubu.
Many lawmakers, going by feelers from both the Red and Green chambers, are said to be uncomfortable with a Senate president and Speaker that will be taking instructions from Bourdillon, the Ikoyi Lagos residence of Tinubu.
“We want independent-minded persons to lead the NASS, those who can challenge even the party’s leadership when they go wrong; not ‘yes’ men,” an APC senator who does not want his name in print had told TheNiche.
APC miscalculation
APC lawmakers, it was reported, were gathered at the International Conference Centre (ICC) awaiting the arrival of Buhari, who it was divulged was scheduled to meet them before the inauguration. But he never turned up.
But Buhari, our reporter gathered, was said to have abstained from the meeting, when security reports reaching him showed that the exercise would be futile, given PDP’s adoption of Saraki and Dogara.
It was also learnt that Buhari was not in the know of the scheming; the reason he failed to show up.
“I can tell you authoritatively that Buhari was not informed. If you know Buhari, he is not one that plays with things at that level. He is a stickler to time. What he did was simply to tell the APC that he was not part of any plot that was not democratic. He wants to maintain his vow to Nigerians that he would not interfere with anything against democratic principles,” the source disclosed.
The meeting was scheduled for 9am, whereas the inauguration was billed to hold at 10am. It was learnt that the senators were still awaiting the arrival of Buhari when the news got to them in ICC that Saraki had emerged as the Senate president.
Legal practitioner, Isaac Dogbaraga, said APC committed a blunder by its action, knowing well that it had no magic wand to do what it had conceived, particularly in the Senate.
He said there was no way APC would have been victorious with Saraki in the race.
“The attitude of APC was immature. They should have known the game was up when they were unable to convince Saraki to step down. Of course, Saraki has followership too in their party and with the PDP’s underground strategy to reach out to him, the game was up. There was nothing the APC could do but to learn its lesson in a hard way and sit up,” Dogbaraga told TheNiche.
As positioning stands
With the latest election from NASS, it appears the South South is edged out, given that the South East schemed its way to become the deputy Senate president. As the position stands: Buhari from Katsina State, represents the North West zone; his deputy, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, is an indigene of Ogun State and represents the South West; Saraki from Kwara State, represents the interests of the North Central; Dogara, a Bauchi indigene, represents the North East region; while Yusuf Lasun from Osun State, represents the South West zone also.
Nigerians react
Mixed reactions seem to be trailing the NASS election. While some condemn how the leadership of NASS emerged, majority of political observers say what happened was the beauty of democracy.
Immediate past governor of Abia State and PDP Senator representing Abia Central, Theodore Orji, said what happened was “practical democracy in action”.
He told TheNiche that the composition of the present NASS will make for vibrant opposition.
“What we witnessed was democracy in action. With the present composition of NASS, I think we will witness robust legislative fireworks,” he said.
Former House of Reps Speaker, Ghali Na’Abba, said what happened was revolutionary and a welcome development for the nation’s democracy.
PDP National Publicity Secretary, Olisa Metuh, in a statement described the development in both chambers of NASS as a “victory for democracy and triumph of the time-honoured value of the PDP that every zone and segment of the country must at all times be given a sense of belonging in governance.
“PDP had assured the public that it would continue to partner like minds in other political parties and groups to ensure that the nation’s democracy, which it nurtured in the last 16 years, is sustained in the overall interest of the Nigerian people.
“Nigeria as a nation belongs to all of us. Its interest therefore must be put over and above personal, partisan or group interests at all times,” PDP added.
The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) also lauded the outcome of the NASS election, just as it described the exercise as free, fair and transparent.
It applauded President Buhari for keeping to his word of not interfering in the elections of the leaders of NASS.
NLC in a statement signed by its acting president, Kiri Mohammed, expressed optimism that politicians, political parties and organisations would henceforth allow democracy run its course and not dictate or impose candidates or views on others.
It expressed hope that the legislature would establish its independence and focus on patriotic, people-driven legislation to deepen democracy and development in Nigeria.