By Christiana Ekpa
One of the leading aspirants in the race for speakership of the 10th House of Representatives, Hon. Yusuf Adamu Gadgi, on Tuesday disclosed that
Zoning agreement is not a covenant that cannot be amended, stressing that
all material facts have suggested that the President-elect, Bola Ahmed Tinubu may not be privy to the recently released zoning arrangement for leadership of the coming National Assembly.
The ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) through its National Working Committee (NWC) had penned down names of candidates for presiding officers of the 10thassembly of Nigeria’s apex parliament, specifically naming Hon. Abass Tajudeen, and Hon. Benjamin Kalu as Speaker and the Deputy for the House of Representatives in that respective order.
However, Gagdi, a member of the group of seven aspirants for the speakership (G-7) protesting the controversial arrangement of the APC, during a chat with journalists, Tuesday in Abuja said himself and the others were in protest “asking for justice, equity and fairness”.
He said Tinubu by his political antecedents and pedigree, will not fall for the arrangements being peddled around, and assured that the protesting group will be willing to meet with the President-elect at as soon as the opportunity presents itself. “I don’t believe that the President-elect is aware, and I don’t believe this is his idea”, he submitted.
He also faulted the manner in which the purported zoning arrangement came to the knowledge of other aspirants through media reports, a development he tagged “an insult to some of us (the aspirants)”, warning that the G-7 should not be taken for granted as it is an alliance seeking for justice, and will stop at nothing until a reversal is made.
According to him, the North Central geopolitical zone cannot be totally pushed out of the power equation in allocating the six constitutionally backed positions in the national political scene to the advantage of another zone.
“We (the G-7) have not started anything yet, and people are already running to meet governors…The G-7 has come to stay. Zoning is not a covenant that cannot be amended”, he said as he faulted the decision of the APC to narrow down its decision to individuals, without consulting the others who were nterested in the race.
