Southeast Senators-elect on Sunday, met in Abuja. News Week Nigeria gathered that the Senators-elect rejected Akwa Ibom State former governor, Godswill Akpabio as the consensus candidate for the position of Senate President. The senators-elect insist that the next senate President must come from Igboland.
This newspaper had earlier reported that 37 APC senators-elect also rejected the choice of Senators Godswill Akpabio and Jibrin Barau for Senate President and Deputy Senate President respectively by President-elect, Bola Tinubu. According to “Vanguard”, many of the senators-elect at a meeting, numbering about 37, said no to the choice of Akpabio, citing national unity and cohesion as their reason.
In the alternative, the senators reportedly pointed to the direction of the Chief Whip of the Senate, Senator Orji Uzor Kalu for Senate President while they preferred a former governor of Zamfara State, Senator Abdulaziz Yari for the position of Deputy Senate President.
The source added that the APC senators, who visibly showed their disapproval of the preferred choices, demanded the neutrality of the president-elect in the elections of the presiding and principal officers of the 10th National Assembly. On the choice of Abbas, the gathering, according to the source, expressed concern that Abbas may not be accepted by the generality of the House members, saying it would be difficult to market him because many Rep members are rooting for Hon. Muktar Aliyu Betara to become the next Speaker.
