The senate president, Dr. Bukola Saraki, has Thursday, June 25, announced Senator Ali Ndume and Bala Ibn Na’Allah as Senate leader and deputy respectively thereby defying a directive contained in a letter from the APC leadership.
The letter which was signed by the national chairman, John Odigie-Oyegun, recommended that Sen. Ahmad Lawan and George Akume be nominated for the two principal positions of the hallowed chamber.
In a letter which was obtained by Breaking Times and dated June 23, 2015, also had Sen. Sola Adeyeye and Abu Ibrahim recommended for Chief Whip and Deputy Chief Whip respectively (the article continues below).
But contrary to the letter’s recommendations, Saraki also announced that Senator Francis Alimikhena from Edo state has been nominated as Deputy Chief Whip.
In the same vein, the APC national leadership also wrote another letter to the speaker of House of Representatives, Hon. Yakubu Dogara, recommending Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila as majority leader along with Hon Alhassan Ado Doguwa, who was also tipped for deputy majority leader.
However, this led to altercations in the chambers of the House of Representatives today over the Speaker’s refusal to implement the directives of the APC leadership. The House eventually adjourned the sitting to July 21.
The Senate had on Wednesday rejected a move by some All Progressives Congress senators to read the letter from the party’s leadership recommending some senators to occupy specific principal officers of the senate.
Mr. Lawan had lost the senate presidency election to Bukola Saraki, even though he was the preferred candidate. This is presently causing a heat-up among the APC bigwigs as the party still insists that its preferred candidates who failed to be elected president and speaker for the Senate and House of Representatives respectively should be elected as Majority Leaders in both the red and green chambers.
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