N’assembly leadership: We don’t need PDP, Oshiomhole insists

Adams Oshiomhole, national chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), says the party is determined not to entrust the leadership of critical committees in the house of representatives to the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the next parliament.

Oshiomhole, who spoke at a dinner hosted by President Muhammadu Buhari for elected APC lawmakers on Tuesday, said the party is avoiding what he described as “mistakes” made in the 8th assembly.

In 2015, Senate President Bukola Saraki and Yakubu Dogara, speaker of the house of reps, emerged leaders of the parliament against the wish of the APC.

The duo, who were elected on the platform of the APC in the 8th assembly, defected to the PDP in 2018. They subsequently appointed PDP members to be in in charge of some key committees.

But Oshiomhole urged the elected APC lawmakers not to share what belongs to the party with anyone, especially the opposition.

“We cannot as a party which has a comfortable majority, entrust critical committees in the hands of the PDP or opposition,” he said.

“If Nigerians wanted them, they could have voted them. In the days of PDP, every committee was chaired by PDP members.”

He said that the ruling party has about 223 members-elect out of the 360 house members and that 67 were re-elected for the 9th assembly.

Oshiomhole added that there was no room for coalition with the opposition as the ruling party has two-third to execute any legislative business including amendment of the constitution.

“In life, mistakes are permitted. But it becomes a problem if the mistake is repeated twice. We are determined not to repeat the mistakes of 2015 in 2019, we have learnt our lesson,” he warned.

”Out of 223 APC elected members, 67 were re-elected, the rest are new members.

”In other climes, you don’t go into coalition when you are in the majority, you do so when you don’t have the numbers. We have the numbers, out of 360, Nigerians elected 223 APC members because they don’t want Mr President to face the trauma of 2015.”