NASS Leadership: Our zoning template will promote Nigeria fault lines ― APC Integrity Group

The All Progressives Congress (APC) Integrity Group has demanded a review of the zoning template of the party for positions of leadership of the National Assembly.

The zoning arrangement of the APC National Caucus ratified by Senator Abdullahi Adamu National Working Committee (NWC) gave two positions of Deputy Senate President and Speaker of the House of Representatives to the North West. It equally micro-zoned to two individuals from the region: Senator Barau Jibrin, (Kano West) and Tajudeen Abass, representing Zaria Federal Constituency of Kaduna state.

Godswill Akpabio who won the election to represent Akwa- Ibom North West, (South-south) in the Senate was picked as the favoured candidate for Senate Presidency while Benjamin Kalu, with a fresh mandate to represent Bende Federal Constituency, Abia State(southeast) was announced as the favoured choice for Deputy Speaker.

Speaking with journalists in Abuja on Friday, Mallam Dawu Mohammed, National Coordinator of the Forum described the zoning arrangement as unfair, unjust and inequitable.

Flanked by his National Secretary, Chisom Nwakanma, the National Coordinator submitted that a certain zone, the North Central is at the receiving end of the zoning of the offices of Presiding Officers as it noted that ” no amount of argument can justify a zoning script that does not answer to the very question of inclusivity, mutual respect and oneness for a nation with growing fault lines.”

The Forum further pleaded with the national secretariat of the party especially its national leadership “to have a rethink and save the APC from a possible implosion.

“We can have the offices zoned to give the various parts of the country a better sense of belonging to the country, other than what we have now.”

The group urged the NWC to consider the positive contributions of the North Central region to the growth, stability and consolidation of the APC across the country, especially at the executive and National Assembly levels.

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