The North-Central APC Young Patriots, a coalition of youth groups of the party in the geopolitical zone, has vowed to resist zoning of the Speaker of the House of Representatives in the 9th National Assembly to the South-West.
Some members of the All Progressives Congress who want to be Speaker of the House have also called on the ruling party to lobby lawmakers in the opposition Peoples Democratic Party instead of moving against them.
Addressing journalists in Abuja on Saturday at the Stone Edge Hotel, Abuja, the Convener, APC Young Patriots, Mr Dominic Alancha, said though the party had yet to officially announce the zoning to the South-West, it should not do so to avoid opposition to the party’s candidate like in 2015.
Alancha said, “If the party goes ahead to zone the position of the Speaker to the South-West because it wants to foist a particular candidate on lawmakers, disregarding popular support and equitable zoning formula, it will thereby be short changing the North-Central of its hard-earned right which will be resisted by this group.
“One would expect that since the Senate presidency was zoned to the North-East, being the zone that contributed the highest number of votes after the North-West, the speakership position will naturally go to the next in line – the North-Central zone – which produced the second largest votes after the North-East (2,465,599).
“So, why is the party suddenly shifting the goal post when it comes to zoning the speakership position by considering the South-West that performed less than the North-Central and even already has the number two position of a Vice President? ls this an equitable thing to do?”
The House of Representatives-elect from the six states in South-West rose from a closed-door meeting in Ibadan on Friday and pledged to support the party’s decision on the House leadership structure.
Led by their National Coordinator, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo from Ondo State, alongside their South-West Coordinator, Musliudeen Akinremi, the elected representatives, who converged on Ibadan Business School, Bodija for the meeting, said the zone deserved the speakership position.
They said as loyal party members, they had no objection to the party’s position on selection of the house leadership.
Akinremi said, “We had a fruitful deliberation during the meeting, which lasted for over three hours.
“We all agreed to abide by the consensus arrangement of the party in choosing the house leadership. We pledged to protect the interest of the party, especially on the need to make the APC stronger ahead of the 2023, in Yorubaland.”
Meanwhile, some APC aspirants for the position of the Speaker in the House of Representatives have faulted the ruling party’s National Chairman, Mr Adams Oshiomhole, for declaring that the PDP would not get any leadership position or chairmanship of a major committee in the coming 9th National Assembly.
Speaking with some journalists on Thursday, an APC lawmaker-elect from Oyo State, who is one of the two speakership aspirants from the South-West, Mr Olusegun Odebunmi, warned the leadership of the ruling party against dismissing the PDP lawmakers.
Odebunmi said, “Many people outside don’t know how things work in the National Assembly. Every member has a role and a stake when we are talking of the leadership. We (APC) are lucky to be the majority but we will still move ahead to lobby our members (in the opposition) towards our direction, otherwise we cannot have a peaceful house.”
Another APC lawmaker, who is one of the speakership aspirants from the North-East, told SUNDAY PUNCH that while Oshiomhole was emphasising the quantity of those in the majority, he had ignored the quality of those in the minority.
The ranking lawmaker said he would ignore Oshiomhole’s threats and work with those in the opposition if he became speaker.
“Our problem is that the APC’s majority is about quantity, not quality. If you go to the floor of the House – go and observe this, it is the PDP people who are always attending plenary; some of our people will just come and sign, and go away to attend to their private businesses,” he said.
No fewer than 17 members of the House are contesting leadership positions in the coming 9th National Assembly. All of them want to be speaker except Mr Magaji Aliyu from Jigawa State in the North-West who wants to be deputy speaker.
The speakership aspirants include the Majority Leader, Femi Gbajabiamila, who was the preferred candidate of the APC in 2015; the immediate past Senior Special Assistant to the President on National Assembly Matters (House of Reps) and former Majority Leader, Kawu Sumaila (APC, Kano); and the Deputy Majority Leader, Ahmed Wase (APC, Plateau).
Another aspirant is the leader of the North-East caucus, Mohammed Monguno (APC, Borno), a ranking member who has just been re-elected for the fifth term just as Gbajabiamila. In 2015, the APC had chosen him to be a deputy speaker.
Also on the list is Olusegun Odebunmi from Oyo State, the only APC member to become Gbajabiamila’s opponent in the South-West; and the Chairman, Committee on Aviation, Nkiruka Onyejeocha (Abia), the only female contestant who is coming to the House for the fourth term.
The Chairman, Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Abdulrazak Namdas (Adamawa), who is in the camp of the current Speaker, Yakubu Dogara, is also in the race.
There is also a former Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Khajidat Bukar-Ibrahim (APC, Yobe), who had earlier served three terms in the House before becoming minister and has been re-elected for a fourth term; while her husband, Senator Bukar Abba Ibrahim, who was governor of Yobe State, is an outgoing three-term Senate member.
Also on the list is Yakub Buba (Adamawa) who is said to be the only Christian member from North-East. In 2015, Buba had backed Gbajabiamila and has since been in the camp of the Majority Leader.
Others are the Chief Whip, Alhassan Ado-Doguwa (Kano); Chairman, Committee on NIMASA, Umar Bago (Niger); Chairman, Committee on Finance, Babangida Ibrahim-Mahuta (Katsina); Chairman, Committee on Tertiary Education and Services, Mr Suleiman Aminu (Kano); Abubakar Lado (Niger); and Muhammed Kazaure (Jigawa).
Punch
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