Only a few weeks ago, newly elected members of the Federal House of Representatives were issued Certificates of Return by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and some of them have already started indicating their interests in principal offices in the yet-to-be inaugurated 10TH National Assembly.
The race for the position of Speaker looks more intense as the incumbent Rt. Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila is not likely to return to the seat.
Gbajabiamila, who represents Surulere 1 Federal Constituency in Lagos State, is restricted by law from returning to the position because the President- elect, Bola Tinubu, also hails from Lagos.
As the nation awaits the official inauguration of the 10th National Assembly in June, scheming for the position of Speaker is already in full swing and the aspirants are busy criss-crossing the country in search of support from stakeholders, including political heavyweights in all the six geopolitical zones.
The scramble is due to failure on the part of the leadership of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) to discuss the zoning of the principal offices of the National Assembly during a meeting it held in Abuja shortly after the Presidential and National Assembly elections, which also had President-elect Bola Tinubu, represented by his running mate, Kashim Shettima, and newly elected lawmakers in attendance.
North West, North Central Favoured
Despite the fact that the APC has not come out with a zoning formula for the positions of Senate President and Speaker of the House of Reps, political analysts believe that the North-Central and North-West are favoured to produce the next Speaker.
Analysts who also believe that the South-East and South-South are favoured to produce the Senate President are ruling the South-West and North-East, both of which have produced the President-elect and the Vice President–elect, out of contention for the two plum jobs in the National Assembly.
However, those who make a case for the North-West on the position of Speaker have suggested that the slot for Senate President should go to the South-East.
They argue that the position is enough compensation to the North-West for producing the highest number of votes for the APC in the presidential and national assembly elections, given that the outgoing President Muhammadu Buhari hails from the zone.
Other members-elect of the house of Reps from other geopolitical zones, such as the North-Central and North-East, are believed to be interested in the position.
Ranking members of the House that are presumed to be interested in the Speakership include its current spokesman, Benjamin Kalu (APC, Abia); Hon .Yusuf Gagdi, (Plateau); Idris Wase (APC, Plateau); Muktar Aliyu Betara (APC, Borno); Aminu Jaji (APC, Zamfara); Abass Tajudeen, (Kaduna) and Alhassan Ado Doguwa (APC, Kano).
A top-ranking APC chieftain told THEWILL, on the condition of anonymity: “From what we are seeing within the party, the contest for the speakership might in the end be narrowed down to incumbent Deputy Speaker, Ahmed Idris Wase and a returning member representing Zaria Federal Constituency, Abbass Tajudeen.”
Wase, it was gathered, enjoys the support of Gbajabiamila and other returning members, while Tajudeen’s onslaught is being led by outgoing Kaduna State Governor, Mallam Nasir el-Rufai.
To underscore their determination, aspirants from the two geopolitical zones have commenced intense lobbying, with a view to corner the number four office in the country. The contest for the speakership of the House of Representatives is very keen since members of the new National Assembly emerged during the last general election.
Although in line with the parliamentary tradition, rules, and convention, the political party with the most legislators is expected to form the majority caucus and produce the presiding officers.
Ranking members, who are returning for the second or more time, are automatically qualified to contest the principal office positions either from the majority or the minority caucus.
Out of the 360 seats in the House of Representatives, the All Progressives Congress (APC) won 162 seats; while the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) won 102.
The Labour Party (LP) and the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) won 34 and 18 seats, respectively, while the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) got four seats.
On their part, the Social Democratic Party (SDP) and African Democratic Congress (ADC) won two seats each, while the Young Progressive Party (YPP) clinched one seat.
However, Nigerians may witness another drama similar to what happened in 2015 when the House of Representatives is inaugurated in June.
The opposition parties are coming together and may ‘fight’ with the APC in the competition to produce the speaker of the House.
The opposition members recently met in Abuja to strategise ahead of the inauguration’s drama.
With the present numbers of members-elect, APC has 162 and the other parties coming together are having 163 members.
The opposition whose meeting, had lawmakers from the six minority political parties in attendance, aimed at forming an alliance ahead of the inauguration of the 10th assembly.
A ranking lawmaker, Hon. Fred Agbedi, from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), said the meeting was meant to enable the lawmakers-elect network, interact and familiarise before their inauguration.
Agbedi said the minority caucuses had the highest number of elected lawmakers in the 10th assembly, giving them greater strength to deepen opposition politics and democracy.
Also, a member of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), Hon. Abdulmumin Jibrin, stated that the opposition lawmakers must work “very closely” to protect their interest.
“We understand that for us to be able to put through our collective interest, for us to be able to protect our ideals as minority parties that fundamentally serve as a check to the ruling party, and to be able to contribute to nation building, we must come together,” Jibrin stressed.
He hinted the opposition lawmakers that, “Whoever calls them for a meeting and tells you anything is not telling you the honest truth. If we do not put ourselves together, we will not be able to marshal through our interests”
On her part, Hon. Beni Lar, another ranking member, said the minority caucuses can achieve a “common goal” if united.
“All of us put together are now the majority and a greater majority. This is something that many parliaments around the world seek to achieve but cannot achieve.
I believe that with our numbers, strength and with our doggedness, we can achieve our common goal and purpose,” she said.
The Front runners
Idris Wase
Born on June 1, 1964, Idris Wase is the current Deputy Speaker of 9th House of Representatives. He is one aspirant that has been going round the country to solicit support for his ambition to lead the House when it is inaugurated in June. And on this journey, he has received assurances of support from prominent leaders of his party, the APC and others like Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State. Wike is a chieftain of the PDP.
Yobe State Governor, Mai Mala Buni, threw his weight behind Wase’s ambition to run for Speaker, ahead of the inauguration of the 10th National Assembly in June, this year.
Buni, a former Acting National Chairman of the APC, who spoke while receiving Wase and his campaign team in Abuja, said, “We in the APC and indeed, the House of Representatives need you more than you need us because there is no better time for us in the party to pay you back for your loyalty than now.
“Experience is not studied in the university; it evolves from institutional participation and entrenched ideas, which you already have. For us, we know you will work based on experience because you are prepared more than any other.
Wase has also received endorsements from a former Governor of Ogun State, Chief Olusegun Osoba and Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State, among others.
The former Ogun governor, who said the North-Central deserved the position of Speaker, described Wase as his “experienced and beloved son.”
Addressing Wase, Osoba said, “This is your home. You are an experienced and beloved son of mine. North central has been very crucial in APC electoral victories.
“The North-Central deserves to be Speaker, even by performance. Awo said we must reward performance and allocation was based on performance in those days. So in the case of North-Central, that should be done. Be rest assured. It will be zoned to North-Central and then we go into the next stage. Wase, you are my beloved son, I repeat.”
Muktar Betara
Muktar Aliyu Betara is a Nigerian accountant and lawmaker, first elected to the House of Reps in 2007 to represent the Biu/Bayo/Shani and Kwaya Kusar Federal Constituency of Borno State. He is currently the Chairman, House Committee on Appropriations in the 9th.
This marks Betara’s fourth tenure as a member of the House of Representatives.
He has vowed to fight on even if the position was not zoned to his north east geo-political region.
Betara, in a statement by his campaign group, Betara National Patriotic Mandate, said he was aware of “deft moves” by some influential leaders in the APC to zone the North-East out of the speakership race.
The statement signed by the national coordinator of the group, Mallam Maigari Al- Amin stated.
“We are watching the events that are going on and we can see that some influential leaders are making deft moves to zone the Northeast out the Speakership race and hereby say that our principal, Betara, Insha Allah shall become the Speaker because nobody can cow us and even convince us to stop this project. We shall fight on and win whether the party zones to North east or not.
Yusuf Gagdi
Yusuf Adamu Gagdi is representing Pankshin/Kanam/Kanke Federal Constituency of Plateau State in the 9th National Assembly.
The Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Navy, Hon. Yusuf Gagdi, is one of the contenders for the position of Speaker of 10th National Assembly, should the position be zoned to North Central region of the country.
He is also spearheading efforts aimed at having the seat zoned to the North Central region of the country.
Gagdi, a former Plateau State House of Assembly Deputy Speaker, is one of the leading contenders for the seat, if the zoning favours North-Central.
The APC lawmaker, who just won his second re-election bid, is appealing to those who matter and members of the party’s National Working Committee (NWC) on the need to support the North-Central in producing the next Speaker of the House. His argument on why the position should be zoned to the North-Central is apt because, in the history of Nigeria’s legislature, out of the zones that have occupied the seat of the Speaker of House of Representatives, the North-central zone has had the shortest stint, serving only for three months.
The only time the zone held the position was in 1983, when the NPN administration of President Shehu Shagari won a second term and Hon. Chaha Biam from Benue State, was elected Speaker of the House of Representatives and served from October to December of that year before the military came and sacked the Second Republic.
Abass Tajudeen
Abass Tajudeen is currently representing Zaria Federal Constituency of Kaduna State. He is banking on the fact that the North-West will be favoured for the position of Speaker. He has the backing of the Governor of Kaduna State, Malam Nasir el-Rufai and other APC leaders in the North-West.
AYO ESAN, has been actively reporting and analyzing political events for different newspapers for over 18 years. He has also successfully covered national and state elections in Nigeria since the inception of this democracy in 1999.
