Pick Wase as consensus candidate, northern group tells speakership hopefuls

The Northern Patriotic and Democratic Coalition has asked the speakership hopefuls to nominate Idris Wase as their consensus candidate.

The group said the aspirants should rally behind Wase to stop the “imposition” of Tajudeen Abbas by the All Progressives Congress (APC).

The APC had nominated Abbas and Benjamin Kalu as the preferred candidates for the positions of speaker and deputy.

The nomination has been met with pushback from six aspirants who have allied to ensure the speaker is elected from among them.

The alliance — dubbed G6 — include Wase, Muktar Betara, Sada Soli, Aminu Jaji, Yusuf Gagdi, and Miriam Unuoha.

In a statement issued on Thursday, Regina Audu, the group’s spokesperson, said Wase is the only candidate among the G6 that can defeat Abbas.

“Wase epitomizes character, competence, and capacity. A five-timer, he is the most experienced of all the aspirants and would represent the interest of the majority of the members and not that of Gbaja,” the statement reads.

“Wase hasn’t been a mere spectator all these years. In his four terms, he held the chairmanship of key committees and sponsored at least a dozen bills.

“As Chair of the Federal Character Commission, for instance, the current deputy speaker paid no attention to ‘connections’ by ensuring that Nigerians from different ethnic and religious backgrounds get employed in Ministries, Departments, and Agencies of the federal government, strictly based on merit. This endeared Wase to many children of less-privileged Nigerians.

“As the Chair of the House Committee of the Whole, he was key to the passage of critical bills such as the PIB, and the amendments to the new Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA), which has already been noted to be easing doing business in Nigeria.

“As the chairman of the Ad hoc Committee on the Review of the 1999 Constitution, Wase achieved uncommon milestones. President Muhammadu Buhari has just assented to some of the bills passed in the amendment of the constitution. Some of these assented bills will promote true federalism, devolution of powers from the centre to the states, as well as strengthen government institutions.

“At the continental level, Wase is currently the first deputy speaker of the ECOWAS Parliament. This is no mean feat. As the first deputy speaker of that parliament, he has been a champion of Nigeria’s national interests within the broader interests of the West African sub-region.

“Wase’s achievements have endeared him to colleagues who respect him. The first-timers look up to him. In Wase, you have a complete package and with the backing of these five powerful aspirants, we are sure he will defeat Gbaja and the enemies of Nigeria.

“It is on this note that we wish to appeal to the Coalition of Progressive Speakership Aspirants to support one of their own. While each member has the right to contest for the coveted seat, it is best to unite for a common cause with Wase as a figurehead.

“Our nation is at a critical period and only men and women of goodwill can save it from collapse. Gbaja and Abbas don’t mean well for Nigeria. Thankfully, there are still patriotic Nigerians who can neutralize their gimmicks.”