The growing scramble for leadership positions in the yet-to-be inaugurated 9th National Assembly could throw the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC into serious crisis as Conference of APC State Publicity Secretaries (CAPS) in the South East has called on Hon Femi Gbajabiamila, who is most favoured for the position of the Speaker of the House of Representatives to drop his ambition for the sake of equity.
The group in a statement signed by all members including the publicity secretaries of the party in the five South East States said it was politically incorrect for the South-West to the office of Vice President and Speaker, the North East, Senate Presidency and Secretary to the Federal Government, while the South East goes home ‘whipping’ and weeping.
“We wish to invite Hon Femi Gbajabiamila, an otherwise distinguished and ranking member of the Federal House of Representatives to drop his ambition to be the Speaker for now and continue to serve as Majority Leader, because ‘this house must be built on equity.”
“It is our considered view that the South West Geopolitical zone cannot take the office of Vice President and Speaker, the North East, Senate Presidency and Secretary to the Federal Government, while the South East goes home ‘whipping’ and weeping.
“We think that Gbajabiamila should be part of this solution, sacrificially. We expect a rework of what has been passed to the public domain as ‘APC zoning’, which the National Chairman of our great party gladly says has not been concluded, going by his recent interview on Channels Television.”
“It, therefore, stands to reason that a presiding officer position in the National Assembly will set the balancing tone for inclusiveness. For the avoidance of doubt, the 2019 election into the National Assembly is a different ballot from the presidential polls. Yet the South East recorded 2015-to-2019 improvement in both.
“We remain loyal and committed to APC and its noble cause of creating viable, valuable and desirable change in the politics of Nigeria, and hold that such must eschew brazen exclusion.
“We do not envisage a post-May 2019 Federal Government in which the three arms of government will be led by persons from the same part of the country. We, no doubt acknowledge the qualities of the men seeking offices from various parts of Nigeria but insist that Nigeria needs only one standard in carrying on its affairs.
“The South East has every reason to be represented in the governance map.”
