The battle for Senate and House of Representatives leadership gathers momentum, as lawmakers line behind their preferred candidates, Assistant Editor, North, CHUKS EHIRIM, writes.
The thinking is gradually gaining ground that when the eighth National Assembly reconvenes on June 6, the South West geo-political zone would produce the Speaker of the House of Representatives. There are also indications that if that sails through, the post would go to Femi Gbajabiamila.
For Gbajabiamila, currently, the House Minority Leader, the coast became clearer last Tuesday when one of his closest rivals for the office, Mohammed Mongonu, from Borno State, forged an alliance with him, for the purpose of edging out another formidable opponent, Yakubu Dogara, from Bauchi State.
The alliance was made public during the retreat organised for House of Representatives-elect of the All Progressives Congress (APC), in Abuja, that day.
Mongonu, who had earlier indicated interest in the job, told journalists his reasons for dropping the ambition.
He said, “After broad consultations and thoughtful consideration, I have decided not to run for the office of the Speaker in the eighth Assembly. Instead, I give my full endorsement to my friend and colleague, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila, who I believe has the requisite qualification to lead the eighth Assembly in the onerous task of addressing the important and pressing needs of the citizens of this nation. I will instead be running for the Deputy Speaker position on a joint ticket with Hon. Gbajabiamila.”
He said he was withdrawing from the race to ensure party cohesion and because Gbajabiamila stands tall among his colleagues in terms of experience and understanding of the contours and nuances of the legislative process.
“The convention in representative democracies the world over is that having served as minority leader, you ascend to the Speakership position, should your party gain the majority. The reason is simple: managing the complexities and subtleties of the legislative process is serious business. It cannot be left in the hands of anyone who desires to learn on the job,” he added.
Gbajabiamila later expressed gratitude to Mongonu and other forces who made it possible for the understanding to be reached between the two of them.
His words: “It is a welcome development. But it is even more welcoming when it comes from no less a person than M.T. Mongonu. The gesture becomes even more valuable at that point.
“He has been in the house for 12 years without blemish and all of us will understand that staying in any legislative house, not to talk about here in Nigeria, for four years without any blemish says a lot, let alone 12 years. It says a lot about the character and person of M.T. Mongonu.”
But Northern youths have remained opposed to the alliance between Gbajabiamila and Mongonu. They are rather rooting for Dogara.
In a statement by the group’s chairman, Suleman Ahmed, and Secretary, Pius Garba, last Monday, the North Central and North East Youths argued that Dogara, over the years, has garnered experience which will benefit the nation if elected Speaker of the eighth House.
It was not certain, however, if the group’s resistance may have much weight against the backdrop of an influential percentage of the political class that seems to favour a particular permutation that has ceded the position of Senate president to the North East geo-political zone.
The issue of zoning and godfather politics in APC are two burning issues that are yet to be finally laid to rest, as the president, Muhammadu Buhari, who was inaugurated last Friday, has again reiterated his willingness to work with any leader of the National Assembly that the process throws up, irrespective of what part of the country he or she hails from.
In a statement on Wednesday, May 2, Buhari said the clarification was necessary in view of the continued name-dropping in some circles linking his name to some candidates.
According to him, “I am prepared to work with any leader that the House or Senate selects; it doesn’t matter who the person is or where he or she is from.”
He stressed that given that there is due process for the selection of leaders of the National Assembly, he will not interfere in it.
“Nigeria has indeed entered a new dispensation. My administration does not intend to repeat the same mistakes made by previous governments,” he stated.
As the scheming in who emerges Speaker of the House rages, so also is the power game replicated in the Senate. The two principal figures in the contest are Ahmed Lawan and Bukola Saraki. Senator George Akume from Benue State (North Central) last weekend stepped down for Lawan.
TheNiche, however, learnt that there appears to be more obstacles in the way of Saraki principally because of the alleged role he played in destabilising the PDP. His critics argue that given the role he played against his former party, it would be too risky entrusting him with such weighty office. The party is, thus, said to be perfecting plans to stop his Senate presidency ambition.
Even then, the 60 senators on the platform of the APC are divided over the contest of Saraki and Lawan, with each side claiming majority support from their colleagues.
The Saraki group had, penultimate Saturday, claimed that it had 35 senators backing its candidate. Those loyal to the Lawan group came up with statement that they have 37 APC senators backing his ambition.
But speaking on the issue, a chieftain of PDP from the South South said this is the time the zone would revenge on Saraki.
According to the source who pleaded not to be mentioned, there had been immense pressure on the immediate past President, Goodluck Jonathan to call a meeting of all PDP senators-elect and get their consent to vote against the ambition of Saraki.
According to him, “We cannot allow somebody who pulled us down to climb. Since Saraki felt it was nice for him to destroy PDP and stop Jonathan’s second term ambition, he would not have the support of PDP senators, especially from the South South and South-East.”
The plan by PDP is to give Lawan block votes from the party to scuttle the ambition of Saraki.
TheNiche gathered that some South South/South East senators-elect had earlier been contacted to support Saraki; but with the recent development, they may ditch the former Kwara governor, the source said.
Saraki, a two-time senator, was one of those that formed the new PDP and put a crack into the party. He influenced his home governor, Abdulfatah Ahmed, to join the other governors led by governor of Rivers State, Rotimi Amaechi, to defect to APC at the height of the crisis.
