Now, my team has comfortable margin to beat anyone for speakership—Gbajabiamila
Ahead of the growing tight contest for the post of the Speaker of the Federal House of Representatives in the emerging ninth National Assembly, frontline Lagos contestant and current Majority Leader, who seems to have been anointed by his party, the All Progressives Congress (APC) for Speaker, Mr Femi Gbajabiamila, has revealed that he is now in shadow lead if election is conducted.
In a terse briefing in Abuja Tuesday, Chairman of the Gbajabiamila Speakership Campaign Council, Mr Abdulmumin Jibrin, claimed that based on the numbers to win the seat at the House of Representatives leadership election, his principal is in comfortable lead.
According to him, “The Majority Leader was reaching out to the current Speaker, Mr Yakubu Dogara; former Speakers, opposition members and other speakership aspirants,” and vowed that
“For now, we have a comfortable margin.”
Whereas arguments against the resultant Muslim-Muslim ticket which will emerge if Hon Wase, which is being projected to deputise Gbajabiamila all won the June 9 election, more underground politicking is still growing across the other geo-political zones of the nation.
However, just as South West is solidly behind Gbajabiamila, the South East is equally demanding an appropriate representation on the basis that there was a remarkable improvement in the number of votes garnered in 2019 elections compared with that of 2015.
Hon Nkeiruka Onyejeocha, APC, Abia, a fourth timer and the only female contestant in the race however said, “Nigeria is ripe to produce a female speaker,” just as Hon John Chike, APC, Imo, a second timer simply argued that “South East has not been given a fair deal and we deserve a better deal. In 2015, we only garnered 183,000 votes for Buhari but in 2019, we garnered close to half a million votes so we have remarkably improved.
“We deserve a better deal in 2019, in this new dispensation for the South East,” Chike averred.
Lead by Hon Mohammed Umar Bago, APC, Niger, an active proponent of the North Central movement for the actualisation of the Speakership ambition, the North Central is armed with facts and figures showing that the zone amassed over a million votes for Buhari, and if democracy is all about figures then nothing less than the number four position should be given to their zone.
Besides, the North East lawmakers are equally arguing that despite the zoning of the Senate presidency to their zone, there’s no rule stopping them from having a shot at the coveted speaker’s position.
This claim is driving Hon John Dyegh, APC, Benue, a third timer in submitting in his campaign that “I will pursue my ambition till June 9, on the floor of the House. Those of us from the North Central can’t trade number three for anything less than the position of the speaker. We have the figures in terms of votes contributed, there’s no going back.
Recall that the leadership of the APC had at a dinner anointed Gbajabiamila for speakership and Senator Ahmed Lawan for Senate Presidency as all eyes look onto June 9, 2019, the Election Day for leadership positions at the ninth National Assembly.
