By Seyi Babalola
The Governor of Nasarawa State, Abduilahi Sule, has said that Northern Governors who championed the call for the Presidency of Nigeria to be zoned to the southern part of Nigeria, could not be seen opposing the choices of the party and President-elect, Bola Tinubu, on those to occupy the office of the Senate President and his deputy.
Addressing members of the Stability Group, a body campaigning for the emergence of Senators Godswill Akpabio and Jibrin Barau, as Senate President and Deputy Senate President respectively for the 10th Senate who were on a thank you visit to him, in Abuja, he thanked the group under the chairmanship of the Governor of Ebonyi State, Dave Umahi for the visit and charged them to, apart from consulting major stakeholders of the party, should also talk to their colleagues who are still out of the group.
He specifically thanked the DG of the group, Senator Ndume for supporting and working for the success of Akpabio/ Barau ticket despite the fact that he had tried twice to occupy same office, saying, “that you have already 70 of your colleagues in your group and you you are still going around soliciting for votes, shows humility.”
According to the governor, “the northern governors took the decision to zone the position of this country to the south, in the overall interest of its unity. At the end of it all, God gave us the best in Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu. We cannot therefore be seen opposing his choice and that of the party, for the office of the Senate President.
“When he returns from his oversea trip, we will meet with the President-elect and think outside the box in order to have something for our zone. Senators Akpabio and Barau, have my blessings. All the Northern governors are with Akpabio on this a d we will consult widely to ensure that they emerge the Senate President and Deputy Senate President.”
“The country, he noted, is facing a lot. The incoming president will need somebody like Akpabio, as the chairman of the National Assembly, to enable him push through his plans for Nigerians. Senator Akpabio to the best of my knowledge, has paid his dues, and that is why we are supporting him.
“Let me also encourage you to visit your colleagues and show them how important they are and once you do that, they will come on board. You have a lot to do. We must work very hard to reunite this country and I know Akpabio has what it takes to achieve that because he has a Pan Nigerian spirit.”
Earlier in his speech, Senator Ndume had informed the governor of their mission in his official residence, saying, ” we are here to thank you and further solicit for your support. There are people that are yet to come on board especially your former colleagues and friends. Your Excellency, you can do a lot for us in this regard because you are one of the very many respectable voices in our party and beyond.
In his comment, the Senate Presidential hopeful, Senator Akpabio said, ” Your Excellency, we are very appreciative of the decision of our party to zone the Senate President to the South. I believe this was done after due consultations and as a stakeholder of our party, your input must have been sought.
“We are going round talking to stakeholders across party lines because the next Senate has eight parties making up its membership and this is the first of its kind since 1999. We are currently building bridges across the country. I ask for more of your support as we forge ahead in our resolve to make Nigeria a better place. Please talk to your colleagues to support this ticket so that we can move ahead in the overall progress of Nigeria and Nigerians.
“We have been going round to thank the various political parties who, through their Senators- elect bought into this project. We would work with the next administration to create jobs for our teeming youths”, he declared.
