The senator representing Borno South at the Senate, Ali Ndume has said that President Bola Tinubu told him that Godswill Akpabio is his preferred candidate for the President of the 10th Senate.
“The President told me that his preferred candidate is Akpabio, and I should lead the campaign,” Ndume said on Channels Television programme on Wednesday.
The lawmaker representing Borno South at the Senate added that Tinubu also told him to personally lead the campaign for Akpabio’s Senate President ambition.
He expressed confidence that the president wouldn’t change his stance on the leadership of the 10th Senate.
According to the lawmaker, who has been in the National Assembly for 20 years, out of the 109 elected senators in the red chamber, 75 have queued behind Akpabio’s ambition as of today.
Admitting strong competition from the camp of the former governor of Zamfara State, Abdulaziz Yari, who is another top contender for the position of Senate President, Ndume said the Akpabio camp has all the advantages.
READ ALSO: President Tinubu seeks European Union support on security, poverty alleviation
“As of today, I am telling you we have 75 senators. All the advantages are on our side. We have the support of the party, we have the support of the president, and most importantly, we have the support of most of the senators. These senators signed up to endorse our program,” he said.
While maintaining confidence in the ability of the Akpabio camp to carry the day during the election, the Borno lawmaker did not rule out surprises, as he acknowledged that people can change their minds at the last minute.
“Let’s say that some people will jump over at the last minute; that can happen, but I am very confident. I don’t want to be overconfident because people can change their minds, but we have a better candidate.
“We have two candidates that are in front now, that is, Yari and Akpabio, and our candidate has all the advantages over the other candidate, politically and intellectually. We have an added advantage,” Ndume stated.
In May, the All Progressives Congress (APC) zoned four principal positions for the 10th National Assembly and named elected lawmakers to occupy each position.
The zoning arrangement is as follows: Senate President, South-South, Godswill Akpabio (Akwa Ibom); and Deputy Senate President, North-West, Barau Jibrin (Kano).
Others are the Speaker of the House of Representatives (North-West): Abass Tajudeen (Kaduna); and the Deputy Speaker, South-East: Ben Kalu (Abia).
(omayowa@globalfinancialdigest.com; Newsroom: +234 8033 964 138)
