The tussle to have the new National Assembly [NASS] to toe the line of the leadership of the ruling party, the All Progressive Congress [APC] may have bumped into more obstacles that it had originally foreseen. This is as information made available to 247ureports.com indicates that the leadership of the APC comprising of Bola Tinubu and Adamu Oshiomole have finalized plans on installing a totally Muslim leadership at the two houses of the NASS.
The first choice for the seat of Senate President for the APC leadership, according to credible reports is Senator Ahmed Lawan from Yobe Northern senatorial district. He is a Muslim. Â Other senators gunning for the seat of senate president include Ali Ndume (Borno south) and Danjuma Goje (Gombe central) and Senator Abdullahi Adamu (Nasarawa west). There are all Muslims.
The likelihood of a Muslim Senate President comes against the heels of a Muslim President – and a Muslim populated Council of Service Chiefs and all the State Security apparatus.
The lower chamber of the NASS also appears to threaten installing a Speaker from the Muslim religious faith. The leadership cabal of the APC had already zoned the leadership to the south west and north central geo political zones. Their choice candidates from the said zones speaks volumes.
A major contender for the position is House Leader, Femi Gbajabiamila, who, like Lawan, was APC’s choice for the Number 4 seat in 2015, but lost it to Dogara. Having won his re-election to represent Surulere 1 Federal Constituency of Lagos State, Gbaja, as he is fondly called, has once again indicated his interest for the position. He is a Muslim.
Another contender for the speaker’s seat is Ahmed Idris Wase from Plateau State, who is also a ranking member, having been in the House since 2007. Wase, as his colleagues prefer to call him, enjoys the support and cooperation of most of his colleagues as he is considered as an elder who is blessed with a lot of wisdom. He is a Muslim.
Babangida Ibrahim, who chairs the House Committee on Finance, is another contender for the office of the Speaker. He first came to the House in 2011 under the defunct Congress for Progressive Change (CPC). Since becoming the chair finance, Ibrahim has become one of the forces to reckon with in the House as he is among its power brokers. Though he is from the same state as Buhari (Katsina), some believe that he could still clinch the position as the lawmakers may decide to do away with any zoning arrangement that the party may come up with. He is a Muslim.
Another contender is Mohammed Tahir Monguno from Borno State, who has been in the House since 2007 and headed different committees. Monguno is unrivalled in terms of commitment to legislative activities as he is one of the few members that never missed plenary sitting. Monguno almost became Deputy Speaker in 2015 as he ran together with Gbaja for the position. His defeat last time was due to the emergence of Dogara, who is also from the North-East. He is a Muslim.
Abdulrazak Namdas, chairman of the House Committee on Media, is also eyeing the speaker’s seat. Namdas came to the House in 2015. Interestingly, Namdas hails from the constituency of the PDP Presidential Candidate Atiku Abubakar. He is a Muslim.
For this reason, there appears a concern among the observant Christian segment of the NASS over the likely make up of the leadership of the NASS. A petition was raised and brought to the attention of the APC and PDP leadership – and was presented to the presidency.
247ureports.com is the level of traction the petition had gains in affecting the expected outcome of the coming NASS elections.
