The All Progressives Congress,( APC) National Working Committee, ( NWC) will take a position on the zoning of principal offices of the National Assembly, this week, Nigerian Tribune learnt on Monday.
A national officer of the party who is a member of the NWC who confided in Nigerian Tribune said the statutory organ of the party agreed last week to come out with a zoning template at the meeting to hold on Wednesday ( tomorrow).
He said:” We are going to have a meeting this week. It was mentioned last week but we all agreed that we continue this week since we couldn’t take a position last week,” he told Nigerian Tribune.
Checks by Nigerian Tribune revealed that principal offices to be filled in the Senate include, Senate Leader, Deputy, Chief Whip and Deputy Chief Whip.
Further checks revealed that lawmakers smarting to fill the positions are from the South West, North Central, North East and South East geo-political zones with the main contenders from an emerging power bloc in the Senate, the Stability Group that promoted the Senators Godswill Akpabio- Barau Jibrin ticket for Senate President and Deputy Senate President.
A member of the Forum who spoke with Nigerian Tribune said members are anxious, waiting for the party national secretariat to unveil its zoning arrangement.
He, however, noted that the South-South and North-West Senators are automatically precluded from the race having produced Senate President, Godswill Akpabio and his Deputy, Barau Jibrin.
“The APC NWC will decide the zones that will fill the position. No one wants to jump the gun. We are waiting for the official pronouncement. But what I can tell you is that for the Senate, the South South and North West are out having got Senate President and Deputy Senate President.
“For the Senate Leader, the North Central may not get it because one ranking lawmaker from the zone is already being positioned for the office of House Leader.”
Multiple sources told Nigerian Tribune that two of the ranking Senators from the southwest, the geo-political zone of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu: Senator representing Oyo North, AbdulFatai Buhari and Senator representing Ekiti Central, Opeyemi Bamidele are in the race for Senate Leader.
The source who mentioned that the Senator representing Ogun West and Chairman of Senate Committee on Finance in the ninth Senate, Solomon Adeola Olamilekan, is also a ranking Senator from the south-west however revealed that the Ogun West Senator is starting to pick the juicy slot of Senate Committee on Appropriation and not interested in Senate Leader, even if zoned to South West by Abdullahi Adamu led NWC.
” Senator Buhari is the most senior among the ranking Senators from the southwest. Opeyemi Bamidele on the other hand, has to his profile, the Chairman, Southern Senators Forum. ”
From the North Central eyeing Senate Leader are Senator representing Niger East, Sani Musa and Senator representing Kwara North, Sadiq Umar.
A serving Senator told Nigerian Tribune that neither of the Senators from the North Central would make it to be Senate Leader as there is an agreement before the election of Presiding Officers of the National Assembly to concede the Leader of the House of Representatives to a ranking lawmaker from the region.
” It was part of the horse-trading between the Tajudeen Abbas and certain lawmakers in the G-6 from the North Central. You know whatever plays out in the Senate would affect the House of Representatives. The same goes for the Senate,” the source noted.
North-East: Ali Ndume, Goje, go for the broke
If the office of Senate Leader is zoned to the North East, two ranking Senators from the region will slug it out for the exalted seat: Senator representing Borno South, Ali Ndume and former Gombe State governor who equally won last February election to represent Gombe Central, Danjuma Goje.
Between the duo, checks revealed that Senator Ndume appears highly favoured among his colleagues.
Ndume once occupied briefly, the office of Senate Leader during the Bukola Saraki eight Senate. The former Chairman, Senate Committee on Army was also an aspirant for the seat of Senate President before he withdrew from the race after the intervention of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. Senator Ndume was to emerge as Director General of the Stability Group, the forum of Senators that promoted the Akpabio- Jubrin ticket.
A source told Nigerian Tribune that members of the group see Senator Goje as an outsider in the camp of the power bloc having worked for the failed ambition of the Senator representing Zamfara West, Abdulaziz Yari.
“Ndume apart from the Vice-President, Kashim Shettima, mobilised Senators from the North for Akpabio. He disabused the minds of his colleagues, particularly the newcomer to the Senate who were being swayed by the narrative from Senator Yari that the North will be shortchanged with Akpabio in the saddle. If the APC zoned to North East, Ndume will get it,” the source argued.
South-east: Orji and Izunaso in the race
In the race for Senate Leader from the south-east is former Abia State Governor and Chief Whip in the ninth Senate, Orji Uzor Kalu and Senator representing Imo West, Osita Izunaso.
Both Senators from the southeast region were aspirants for the office of Senate President until the intervention of Imo State Governor and Chairman, Progressives Governors Forum, Hope Uzodinnma who brokered a deal between the South East Caucus and the winner of the election, Godswill Akpabio.
Party sources told Nigerian Tribune that the emergence of Benjamin Kalu as Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives may have technically made Southeast ineligible for the office of Senate Leader of the 10th National Assembly.
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