10th NASS: APC Denies Zoning Senate Presidency To Southsouth, Speakership To Northcentral

The All Progressives Congress, APC, has denied that it has zoned the positions of the Senate President and Speaker of the House of Representatives to the Southsouth and Northcentral respectively.

The spokesman of the party, Felix Morka, made the denial in an exclusive interview with THE WHISTLER on Thursday against the backdrop of a zoning arrangement purported to have been arrived at by the National Working Committee of the party during its Thursday meeting.

Morka said the party did not hold any NWC meeting today declaring as false the draft consensus arrangement in circulation.

He insisted that, “There was no NWC meeting today,” adding, “It’s fake news.”

If the draft released in circulation is anything to go by, former Akwa Ibom State Governor, Godswill Akpabio is highly favoured to emerge as the next President of the Senate.

This is as frontrunners from the Southeast geopolitical zone, which include incumbent governor of Ebonyi State, Dave Umahi, former governor of Abia State and current Chief Whip of the Senate, Orji Uzor Kalu, and Senator Osita Osinazu would have been excluded from the race.

The race which appears to be pitting the party against the camp of the president-elect, Bola Tinubu, following differences in the choice of principal officers, has seen a number of contestants staking their claims.

While sources said the party favours micro-zoning to the Southsouth, which would mean the highest ranking senator from the zone would likely emerge as the president, in this case Akpabio, the Tinubu camp has expressed their support for the position to go to the Southeast.

During the week, the Director of New Media of the Tinubu Presidential Campaign Council, Femi Fani-Kayode, tipped former Abia State Governor, Orji Uzor Kalu as his preferred choice, sending signals that the current Chief Whip of the 9th Senate may be the choice of the president-elect.

It was however gathered that even if Tinubu favours anyone in particular, he prefers an open regional zoning instead of micro-zoning, to give a sense of belonging to all the contestants.

Sources claimed the president-elect is also wary of the opposition political parties who have enough numbers to usurp the process and tilt the winner in their favour, hence his secret approach.

Tinubu and Abdullahi Adamu, the National Chairman of the APC, have not enjoyed cordial political relationship.

Their political differences came into the open in 2022 when Adamu announced the Senate President, Ahmad Lawan as president Muhammadu Buhari’s choice of presidential candidate for the party in the lead up to the June presidential primary in his bid to stop Tinubu’s presidential bid.

But the unalloyed support by majority of the governors of northern extraction on the platform of the party ensured Tinubu emerged the candidate.

The two politicians have also shared their political differences on the makeup of the presidential transition council with no party member or anyone suggested by Adamu making the list of 15 names sent to the council preparatory to his inauguration.

But against Tinubu’s position that both the Southsouth and Southeast should be allowed to slog it out in the race for the Senate Presidency, a draft zoning consensus arrangement purportedly in circulation and being shared across various APC WhatsApp groups as obtained by this medium proposed a micro-zoning formula.

According to the zoning arrangement, titled, “DRAFT: APC NWC RELEASES ZONING CONSENSUS ARRANGEMENT: 𝐙𝐎𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐎𝐅 𝐎𝐅𝐅𝐈𝐂𝐄𝐒 𝐔𝐍𝐃𝐄𝐑 𝐏𝐑𝐄𝐒𝐈𝐃𝐄𝐍𝐓 𝐀𝐒𝐈𝐖𝐀𝐉𝐔 𝐁𝐎𝐋𝐀 𝐀𝐇𝐌𝐄𝐃 𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐔𝐁𝐔 𝐀𝐃𝐌𝐈𝐍𝐈𝐒𝐓𝐑𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍,” the NORTH CENTRAL retains the National Chairmanship position while it has also been zoned the post of the
Speakership.

The Northeast has the post of the Vice President while it has also been allocated the post of the House Majority Leader of the House of Representatives.

Also, the Northwest has been allowed the positions of the Secretary to the Federal Government and the Deputy Senate President.

Down south, the Southwest which has the Presidency will also have the
Senate Majority Chief Whip.

Meanwhile, the Southeast gets only the post of the Senate Majority Leader.

However, the Southsouth gets the number three position in the land, the
Senate Presidency and the House Minority Chief Whip.