Due to the uncertainty surrounding the resolution of the numerous petitions contesting Tinubu’s victory at the election tribunal, there are strong indications that the strategists of Nigeria’s incoming President, Bola Tinubu, are very interested in who will succeed him as Senate President, THISDAY has learned.
This is due to the fact that Senators Godswill Akpabio, a former Senate Minority Leader and former Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Mr. Adams Oshiomhole, a former National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator Orji Uzor Kalu, the Senate Chief Whip, and Mr. Dave Umahi, the outgoing Governor of Ebonyi State, have continued to be serious contenders for the Senate Presidency.
However, a source familiar with the current iterations stated In order to make room for the former governor of Edo State, who is rumored to be Tinubu’s favorite, there are movements to modify the Senate Rules to allow first-term senators to run for the principal seats. This is because Oshiomhole and Umahi insist on running. Oshiomhole and Umahi will serve their first terms in the Senate. According to information obtained by THISDAY, the Senate Rules forbid the election of a first-term senator, notwithstanding the fact that the APC has chosen the South-
South to produce the Senate President and the North-West to provide the deputy. They are ineligible to run under the present Senate Rules because a principal seat can only be held by a ranking senator. They are ineligible to run under the present Senate Rules because a principal seat can only be held by a ranking senator.
However, a source with knowledge of the current machinations told THISDAY on Saturday night that if Oshiomhole is finally given the go-ahead to run, the APC governors would probably support Umahi. The President-elect and his associates were said to be looking for a candidate they can trust since they were afraid of the potential outcome of the petitions filed in the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal (PEPT) against Tinubu’s victory. In the event that the February 25 presidential election is declared invalid, several sources informed THISDAY over the weekend that Tinubu’s camp is hoping that a dependable ally will be elected Senate President.
According to numerous sources who spoke to THISDAY over the weekend, Tinubu’s campaign is hoping that a dependable buddy would be elected Senate President so that, in the event that the February 25 presidential election is declared invalid, their ally will serve as interim President for a 90-day term. “There are worries the panel will declare the election invalid. They will require a strong Senate President who can hold forth for 90 days if the tribunal declares the election to be invalid, one of the sources told THISDAY. APC Govs’ Zoning Panel Delivers Report on Monday A committee of the Progressive Governors Forum (PGF) on zoning the leadership positions in the National Assembly, which was established at the request of the at the instance of President-elect, on Monday, Tinubu is anticipated to provide its report for the APC’s leadership to review.
According to information obtained by THISDAY, Tinubu asked for the creation of the panel after several governors objected to a consensus plan intended to micro-zone the presiding officers’ positions at the National Assembly to specific people. According to a source who wished to remain anonymous, the anti-consensus governors threatened to take action against the party’s leaders if the federal parliament’s presiding officers were not chosen in accordance with the law. Until the governors interfered and threatened to work against the party by supporting a second nomination on the floor of the chambers during the inauguration of the 10th National Assembly, the President-elect was almost buying into the consensus plans, according to the source.