By Haruna Salami
Forum of National Assembly Legislative Aides from North West, has called on senators and members-elect for the 10th National Assembly, contesting for leadership positions outside the choices recently made by the National Working Committee (NWC) of the All Progressives Congress (APC) to back down.
The forum made the call Tuesday at a special press conference at the National Assembly, Abuja.
The NWC of the APC had, in its zoning arrangements for the leadership of 10th National Assembly, picked Senator Godswill Akpabio from South-South as preferred candidate for Presidency of the Senate and Senator Jibrin Barau from North-West for Deputy President of the Senate.
The party, in a statement signed to that effect by its National Publicity Secretary, Felix Morka, picked Hon. Tajudeen Abbas from North-West for the Speakership position of the House of Representatives and Hon. Benjamin Kalu from South-East for Deputy Speakership position.
However, the zoning arrangement was not respected by some APC federal lawmakers-elect interested in the positions like Abdulaziz Yari (Zamfara West), vying for Senate President, Sani Musa (North Central) vying for Deputy Senate President, Muktar Betara, vying for Speakership of the House of Representatives, etc.
But in their support for the choices made by the NWC of the APC, the National Assembly Legislative Aides from North West said the party was in order for picking Senator Jibrin Barau for Deputy President of the Senate and Hon. Tajudeen Abbas for Speakership of the House of Representatives.
The forum in its statement signed by Zonal Leader, Abdulrazaq Dunkawa and Secretary, Silas Gabriel Garba said “North West deserved the two presiding officers’ positions zoned to it for contributing the highest number of votes to the APC in the Presidential and National Assembly elections”.
The statement reads in part: “We Legislative Aides from the North West like to place on record that the geo-political zone contributed the highest number of votes to the APC in the Presidential and National Assembly elections.
“Results from the elections show that North West played crucial role of keeping APC in power by securing the majority of honourable members and distinguished senators in both chambers.
“The zone, no doubt rightly deserves the zoning made by the party as far as leadership of the 10th National Assembly is concerned.
“We therefore call on other contestants to allow for party supremacy to establish discipline, order and legislative democracy to thrive in the 10th National Assembly”.
