As Saraki gets backing of PDP senators
As elected senators get set to elect a new leadership, Assistant Editor, Ismail Omipidan, reports on the politics and intrigues that may determine who carries the day, between the two front runners for the office of the President of the Senate, Senators Ahmed Lawan and Bukola Saraki from Yobe in the North-East and Kwara, in the North-Central, respectively.
The seventh Senate is expected to terminate next Saturday, June 6, 2015, having been inaugurated on June 6, 2011. However, the Senate, by tradition does not sit on Saturdays, and oblivious of the fact that it has just one more sitting to meet the constitutional requirement of the number of days it is expected to sit in a legislative year, the seventh Senate would shut down, on or before Thursday, June 4, 2015.
Once that happens, the eighth Senate, is expected to come into existence on Tuesday, June 9, 2015. Unlike in 1999, 2003, 2007 and 2011, when long before the Senate chambers were inaugurated, Nigerians, indeed journalists covering the Senate, knew where the pendulum would swing, Daily Sun can authoritatively report that for now, no one can say with certainty, who between Senators Ahmed Lawan and Bukola Saraki, would carry the day, on June 9.
Daily Sun recalls that nothing that is currently playing out in the struggle for the number one position in the Senate, which has not happened in the past.
In 1999 for instance, then President Olusegun Obasanjo preferred Senator Evan (s) Enwerem of blessed memory, while his deputy, then Vice President Atiku Abubakar, preferred Senator Chuba Wilberforce Okadigbo, also of blessed memory. In the end, Obasanjo mobilised all Alliance for Democracy, AD, Senators, led by Senator Mojisoluwa Akinfewa, for Enwerem, and with the support of some PDP Senators, Okadigbo, who was highly rated to beat Enwerem, was shockingly defeated.
Also in 2007, after the PDP met and endorsed Senator David Mark as its preferred candidate, the North-Central zone, with the support of Chief Tony Anenih, met and decided to challenge the position. In all, the group lined up three candidates to slug it out with Mark on the floor of the Senate.
In a well played out script, as allegedly dictated by Chief Tony Anenih (Daboh later confirmed the allegation in his petition to President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua), once nomination for the election was opened, Senators George Akume, Nuhu Aliyu and Gbemisola Saraki were nominated one after the other, in that order, after Mark’s nomination.
As soon as the nominations were brought to a close, Senator Aliyu urged the then Clerk of the National Assembly, Nasir Ibrahim Arab who presided over the session to interpret the rule of the Senate regarding issue of ranking, vis-à-vis Senate leadership position, which ordinarily should have disqualified Akume from contesting for the position.
But the Clerk simply said “we will not go into that, we have passed that stage and since there is no room for debate, we will not talk about that. The vote will be by simple majority.”
As soon as the Clerk concluded his remark, Senator Aliyu again got up to say “in that case, I am withdrawing my nomination, I will support Akume.”
His action was greeted with applause from virtually all those who
belonged to the same camp with him and Akume.
Again, the Clerk said “if you’re withdrawing from the race, say so and do so without saying I support so, so and so.” He had hardly concluded his remarks, when
Senator Gbemisola also stood up to say that she was equally withdrawing from the race.
In the end, all the Senators from Niger, Edo, Kwara and the remaining two from Benue, including all the former governors of Jigawa, Kebbi, Zamfara, Yobe and Kaduna,were among the Senators that voted against Mark, in support of Akume.
In spite of the gang up, Mark with support of some opposition Senators, went ahead to floor Akume by 68 to 39 votes.
The only difference between what happened in the past and what is currently playing out, is the fact that the President, Muhammad Buhari, is refusing to show sympathy and preference for either of the two Senators jostling for the position. However, some party leaders have since taking sides with former Lagos Governor and national leader of the APC, Bola Tinubu, allegedly backing the Lawan/Akume ticket, not necessarily because he believes the ticket is the best per se, in the circumstances the nation finds itself, but largely to make the emergence of another Yoruba and Lagosian, as the Speaker of the House of Representatives, seamless.
Mark, Daily Sun gathered, is favourably disposed to Lawan, emerging the Senate President. Although, he has not come out in the open to say so, his body language and utterances from his close aides are suggestive of the fact that the camp has since pitched its tent with the Lawan’s group. This is even as the group is still having difficulty, penetrating the South-South and South-East, where Saraki’s candidacy currently enjoys tremendous support.
However, Daily Sun further learnt that those close to Mark are already telling him of the need to change tactics, if he must continue to enjoy political feasibility and survive politically, at least for the next four years.
“You know Mark and Akume are sworn politically enemies. And if the axiom that all politics is local is true, then, I don’t see how Mark will survive an APC government in Benue State, combined with an Akume, as Deputy President of the Senate.
“He may have his misgivings against Saraki, but I tell you, one can sit down with Saraki and iron things out, the same cannot be said of a Lawan. I agree with you, that both Saraki and Lawan appear arrogant, but Saraki’s arrogance can be tolerated, you cannot say the same about Lawan.“Saraki has been tested with leadership position before. We knew how he fared. But Lawan had not been tested. So it is possible his level of arrogance would rise, once we make him Senate President.
“Above all, Saraki is more cosmopolitan. And that is why he is already considering running with someone from either the South-South or South-East, just to ensure that the Senate leadership provides some semblance of balance. We cannot say that because the two zones did not vote for us, then we shut them out completely,” one of the APC Senators, who is on the side of Saraki, told Daily Sun, in confidence.
But another impeccable source close to Mark, informed Daily Sun that, if Mark had his way, he would have preferred either Senator Mohammed Goje, from Gombe State or Senator Mohammed Salami Ohiare, from Kogi State, who is making a comeback to the Senate, for the position.
Mark, it was said believed that either of the two Senators are older, and better equipped to lead the Senate. But that since neither of the two Senators are now in the race, he may have pitched his tent with Lawan, to “punish Saraki, for daring to challenge him in the past. But I am sure there are people he listens to, I am sure he would change his mind on that, especially, once he is faced with the reality,” the source added.
There are 109 Senators in the Senate. APC has 60, while PDP has 49. With the death of one its Senators, from Borno, APC, now has 59. Of the 49 PDP votes, the South-South and South-East alone, account for 32 votes. From here, it shows clearly that to win the Presidency of the Senate, both Lawan and Saraki need the PDP Senators. And clearly, anyone of them who gets block votes from the PDP group would certainly carry the day, since the rank of the APC Senators has since been divided between the two candidates.
Ordinarily, nothing stops Mark from presenting himself for re-election as President of the Senate, since neither the Nigeria’s constitution nor the Senate’s standing rules, prevents him from doing so, in spite of the fact that his party, would as from the ninth Senate, become the minority in the Senate.
But the mood of the country does not in any way supports the idea. And up till the time of filing this report, nothing around Mark, including his body language and the utterances from his aides, is suggestive of the fact that he may be contemplating taking another shot at the Senate Presidency.
However, his support for the -would -be President of the Senate, is not only critical, but very strategic. But again, no matter how critical and strategic his support may be, it would translate to nothing much, without carrying the generality of the PDP Senators along.
Already, Saraki, Daily Sun gathered, is already discussing with some critical stakeholders from the South-South and South-East, to support his ambition, in return for the position of Deputy President of the Senate. If and when that happens, Saraki may just be on his way to being crowned as the President of ninth Senate.
Reminded that none of the Senators from either the South-South or South-East is of the APC, the source said: “we are talking about strategic partnership, if you take a look at the distribution in the Senate, then, you will know that if we don’t make deliberate effort to carry these people along, we may end up shooting ourselves on the feet. The truth is, we do not have an overwhelming majority, therefore we need them to make things happen, and achieve the change, we promised Nigerians.
“I can’t remember which republic now, but go and check the history books, when Ume-Ezeoke emerged as Speaker; it was on the platform of the NPP, while the NPN was in power. It was done in the interest of the country. So what we are also proposing is in the nation’s interest. And that is what the Saraki’s group has going for it.”
Reminded that Senator Ali Ndume from Borno may have been penciled down as Deputy President of the Senate to Saraki, the source, said “it is unlikely, because it has never been part of our strategic game plan,” the source, added.
Last Line
From all indications, it seems APC leaders backing Lawan need to do more, to rally support for him, especially from the South-South and South-East, if he is indeed the choice of the party’s leaders. This is so because Daily Sun can authoritatively reveal that the PDP holds the ace.
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