Senator Francis Fadaunsi (Osun East) has debunked reports of opposition parties planning to gang up against the All Progressives Congress (APC) to produce the next senate president.
Fadaunsi said rather than scheme for power, members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) were united in their resolve to contribute their quota to good governance in the next administration.
“The meeting of the minority caucus has started, but it is not to frustrate the APC leadership move on zoning. We are prepared to support the best aspirant from whichever zone,” he said.
Also another senator from North Central, who pleaded for anonymity, said the minority caucus would not rock the boat as far as constitution of the Presiding officers of the Senate is concerned.
“What we are after is the best candidate. And as far as some of us are concerned, the ruling party should know how to give us the best hand for the job. We are not unaware of legislative conventions around the world. Can we be different? No!”.
Meanwhile, another Senator from the Northeast has raised the alarm over ‘desperate attempts by few senators in opposition trying to coerce the ruling party to zone the Senate Presidency to either the Southeast or the Southsouth’.
According to him, the few senators have been deploying all sorts of tactics, including guile against unsuspecting senators-elect into the zoning issue, apparently to weaken the base of the APC in the North, especially the North West.
He said: “The president-elect has to be more careful of these tactics aimed at whipping up religious sentiments into issues as serious as the leadership of the senate. The antics are aimed at ensuring that the APC in the North loses out of a strong political position so the opposition can have a field day planning and mopping up for 2027. They must not be allowed to succeed!”
In a related development, a chieftain of the APC in Kano State, Malam Muazu Dansarauniya, has advised the leadership to zone the Senate presidency to the Northwest.
According Dansarauniya, the party’s performance in the zone during the presidential election has stood it in pole position for the seat. He said it is fair, just and democratic for the party’s leadership to ensure that the Senate presidency comes to the Northwest, and to Kano specifically, the political heartbeat of the north.
“The President-elect and APC leadership should look at the votes recorded in the Northwest during the presidential election as a yard stick in zoning the Senate presidency to the region. We have done very well in this presidential election. We have contributed the most votes.
“So you see, even in terms of reward and recognition, we have the right to say we need to have the Senate presidency. The Presidency has gone to our partners in the Southwest, the Vice Presidency has gone to our partners in the Northeast, and the largest voting block and the largest political block deserves the presidency of the Senate,” he said.