10th n’assembly: APC must unite to avoid a repeat of 2015, says Shehu Sani

Shehu Sani, a former senator, says the All Progressives Congress (APC) must put its house together to avoid a repeat of 2015.

He spoke ahead of the inauguration of the 10th national assembly on June 13.

During an interview with Channels Television, Sani said the party must engage in serious consultations to deliver its anointed candidates for the national assembly positions.

The APC had nominated Godswill Akpabio and Jibrin Barau as senate president and deputy senate president respectively.

For the house of representatives, the ruling party nominated Tajudeen Abbas and Benjamin Kalu as the preferred choice for speaker and deputy, respectively.

However, some lawmakers-elect, including Orji Kalu, Abdulaziz Yari, and Idris Wase, have opposed the zoning arrangement of the party, while insisting on contesting the positions.

In 2015, Ahmed Lawan, the nominated candidate of the APC, lost the senate president position to another member of the party, Bukola Saraki.

Reacting to the development, Sani said President Bola Tinubu must engage with Yari and Kalu in order to deliver his anointed candidates.

“Tinubu being a former senator and he was also part of the circle in 2015 during the Saraki and Lawan issue,” he said.

“I thought that by now the first thing he (Tinubu) needs to do, knowing that his party has the majority, is to first of all go into a room with members of his party.

“Talk to Orji Kalu and Yari. Tell them that this is the person I want to support. They will agree with him. But that was not done.

“What is happening in the national assembly is that there are basically two candidates — Akpabio and Yari.

“Akpabio is the anointed candidate of the president while Yari is the rebel leader. I have no doubt that from now to Monday, if there is no serious consultation, appeasement and horse-trading, it may go the wrong way for the president.

“One thing I know very well is that if the APC goes to the floor without putting its house in order, the 2015 scenario will re-enact itself, especially if there is secret voting.”