10th NASS: Akpabio, Orji Kalu, Yari In Three-horse Race For Senate President

As it stands, three Senators may be nominated during the election of the President of the 10th Senate on the day of inauguration as the former Governor of Zamfara State, Abdulaziz Yari, and the Senate Chief Whip, Orji Uzor Kalu, have vowed not to drop their ambition for the ‘anointed’ candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Godswill Akpabio.

Recall that the APC NWC had picked Godswill Akpabio (Akwa-Ibom/South-South) for the President of the Senate; Jibrin Barau (Kano/North-West) for the Deputy President of the Senate; Tajudeen Abbas (Kaduna/North-West) for the Speaker, House of Representatives; and Benjamin Kalu (Abia/South-East) for the Deputy Speaker.

According to ThisDay, barring the outcome of further negotiations, the Senators-elect might nominate Senators Akpabio, Kalu, and Yari as their candidates for the position of Senate President on the day of their inauguration.

It was learnt that Yari might choose to step down for Kalu before the commencement of voting so that he could contest the deputy Senate President position.

Sources close to Yari and Kalu told ThisDay that the two candidates would challenge Akpabio on the day of their inauguration.

Reports claim that the senators-elect would also nominate three contestants for the position of Deputy Senate President.

The top contenders are Senators Barau Jibrin, who is the party’s preferred choice, Sani Musa, and Yari, who would have stepped down for Kalu during the Senate presidency election.

A Senator-elect from the North-west geopolitical zone told the platform on Saturday that no candidate can boast of having 69 loyal members.

He said: “The highest each of them could boast of is between 40 and 45 committed members.”