APC shops for Saraki’s replacement

The All Progressives Congress (APC) leadership has begun discreet consulta­tions and consideration of some Sena­tors to replace Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki. Plans have reached an advanced stage to re­place Saraki, against the backdrop of his arraign­ment on a 13-count perjury charge at the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT).

Nigerian Senate President, Bukola Saraki

Sunday Sun gathered that some Senators met with some APC top shots in Asokoro District of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) last Wednes­day to consider the options. Present at the meeting were all members of the Senate Unity Forum (SUF) opposed to Saraki. 

According to sources, Senator Barnabas Gemade, chairman of the Adhoc Committee on Works chaired the meeting, which started at 3:00pm.

It was gathered that the meeting agreed that the Senate Presidency should be retained in the North-central.

A ranking member of the SUF disclosed how “it was agreed that the APC should produce the Senate President and the deputy Senate President and the need for all members of the party to close ranks in the chamber. “We also agreed that the position should re­main in the North-central because we still have ranking Senators from the zone…We will, abide strictly with the Senate rules in the choice of new leaders.” 

Ranking APC senators from the North-central zone include Chief Barnabas Ge­made, Chief George Akume, Senator Abdullahi Adamu, Shaaba Lafiaji and Mohammed Ohiari. The new scenario means Senator Ahmad Lawan has been ruled out of the Senate Presidency race. He is from Yobe State in the North-east.

Several factors were stacked against him. The election of Speaker Yakubu Dogara, a Christian from Bauchi State, in the North-east and the ap­pointment of Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Mr. Babachir David Lawal were two major factors which knocked him out of the race. Lawal, hails from Hong Local Government Area, Adamawa State.

With the APC still smarting from the elec­tion of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) senator, Ike Ekweremadu as deputy Sen­ate president, the party is looking towards the South-west to replace him in the proposed new leadership. Another source privy to last Wednes­day’s meeting said the SUF was mandated to “reach out to their colleagues in the chamber be­cause, with the relative advantage in numbers in the chamber, the APC is still fragmented…That is not good for the image of a party that is the ma­jority in the National Assembly and the Execu­tive arm of government.

“We view the election of a Peoples Demo­cratic Party (PDP) deputy in an APC-dominated Senate as a mis-match…that will be corrected,” he said. The source was, however silent on La­wan’s fate. The senate president has, however, denied the plot, describing it as “hogwash” and the figment of the imagination of those behind it.

Special Adviser to the Senate President on Media and Publicity, Alhaji Yusuph Olaniyonu, who spoke to Sunday Sun regretted that the press had been gripped by the orgy of recycling stories. “How can the press report on Tuesday that the Senate president enjoys the overwhelming sup­port of members, only to turn around the next day to say there is a fresh plot to remove him. Let me say that the fresh plot remains only a wish and will never materialize.”

Olaniyonu said that those who were not happy with the rousing confidence vote Saraki secured last Tuesday were doing everything to stir up ten­sion and create discontent where there was none. He said the nation was getting wary of “incessant fresh plots” that had never seen the light of the day. The Senate president’s spokeman said that the senators had resolved to put behind the past and begin to work in the national interest.

Adetutu Folasade-Koyi writes for The Sun News