Battle of supremacy: Akpabio, Yari fight for soul of Senate Presidency

As the 10th National Assembly is inaugurated today, strong indications have emerged that the aspirations of former Senate Minority Leader, Senator Godswill Akpabio and former Governor of Zamfara State, Abdulaziz Yari for the position of the President of the Senate have sharply divided the Senators- elect.

As of yesterday, the decision of who becomes the President of the Senate and Chairman of the 10th National Assembly is shaky as the claimed numbers of supporters are clashing.

At the meeting of Akpabio’s supporter group at the Lagos Hall of the Transcorp Hilton Hotel, while the group claimed over 70 Senators- elect to their camp, only 52 Senators- elect attended the meeting and was worried by the not-too-encouraging number, Vice President Kashim Shettima had promised that he was prepared to go and beg other Senators, especially from the North to support the aspiration of Akpabio and Senator Jibrin Barau for the position of Senate President and Deputy Senate President respectively.

This is just as the support group led by former Deputy Senate Leader, Senator Abdul Ningi, PDP, Bauchi Central who spoke on behalf of Yari at a press briefing had said that there are at least 67 of his colleagues who have keyed into the aspiration of Senator-elect, Abdulaziz Yari to occupy the office of the Senate President, with more on their way.

He had said, “Our latest count was 67 as of yesterday (Tuesday) night and more are still coming.”

There are also strong feelings that the All Progressives Congress, APC may ask Yari to step down for Akpabio before the inauguration, even as the immediate past President of the Senate, Senator Ahmad Lawan may shift his support base to the preferred candidate following the intervention of President Bola Tinubu.

This, a source said may have been concluded to avoid what happened in 2015 when former President of the Senate, Senator Bukola Saraki emerged against the candidates of the ruling party.