By Sani Danaudi Mohammed
The greatest impediment to a Progressive, United Nigeria are Nigerians especially the Political leaders. Until the leaders of this Pathetically under performing “Giant of Africa” decide to serve their fatherland rather than be served, Decide to give rather than take our national wealth and think of the Country first rather themselves,nothing will change and the downward spiral will continue.
The 2023 just Concluded elections will go down in history as the most pluralized along these lines. The increasing Political agitations and calls for power balancing in favour of religions and regions are of the many problems confronting the incoming administration of Senator Asiwaju Bola Ahmad Tinubu. In redeeming the image of a Nigeria Where the Peace, Unity and Fairness form the Priorities of the Government,the need for the South East and North Central regions to Produce the President of the Senate and Speaker of the House of Representatives cannot be overemphasize.
There is high possiblity of the Northern region to flip with its Southern Counterpart the Offices of the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the Deputy President of the Senate with the Vice President elect already in the bag. Nigerians for the first time have won it against the syndrome of Religious Politics that has for decades denied us as a People the opportunity to move to the Peak of development.We are of the opinion that the imperatives of building bridges across boards irrespective of tribes, Religion and Regional identities should carefully guide the rulling All Progressive Congress in Zoning the Principal Offices of the 10th National Assembly.
Is Nigeria a Secular State? According to Omotola Jeremiah Shola, a political scientist and public administration specialist, defines secularism this Way: “Secularism is commonly regarded as ‘an ideology that holds that religious issues should not be the basis of Politics, or (in the extreme) that religion has no place in public life’. Essentially, secularism seeks to preserve the religious neutrality of government and cultures. By the above mentioned definition, Nigeria is no doubt a Secular State with no official state religion. Article 10 of the Constitution states that; The Government of the Federation or of a State shall not adopt any religion as State Religion.
The South East is one of the Six geopolitical zones of Nigeria Representing both a geographic and political region of the country’s inland southeast. It comprises five states of Abia, Anambra, Ebonyi, Enugu and Imo with more than 90% of them forming the Igbo, one of the three largest tribes in Nigeria.
The Central Nigeria, designate as Middle belt region stretching across central Nigeria longitudinally and forming a transition zone between Northern and Southern Nigeria. The region comprises Plateau, Benue, Nasarawa,Niger,Kwara and Kogi States Which Represents the greater Percentage of smaller ethnic Nationalities that have been agitating for Political Power. Although,the likes of IBB,Gen. Abdulsalam Abubakar and Gen. Yakubu Gowon were both head of States.
The need to have these regions in the affairs of Nigeria is critical to the Survival of Nigeria as an entity. The SE has been agitating for Power shift Since the returns of the fourth Republic in 1999, it is belief that the Senate Presidency will bring back to the Government at the Center with a hope that, it will be a stepping stone for the Igbo Presidency.
Political power at the center has been exchanging hands between the South West and the North West Regions of the country leaving behind the South East, North Central, North East and South South Scrambling for either the Vice President, Senate President, Speaker of the House of Representatives and their Deputies. Although,the South South had the opportunity to Produced the Former President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan GCFR who eventually came into the power play after the demised of Late President Umaru Musa Yar’adua in 2010.
The country is still battling with Representation unbalances considering the multi-ecthnic nature and the cultural diversities of Nigeria where all and Sundry are pushing harder to be in the corridor of Power.It is not possible to have all the ethnic nationalities to be in the affairs of government but sharing Power within regions to assimilate the ethnic groups found within such Geopolitical Zones is key in Managing our secularism as a nation.
THE SENATE PRESIDENT/SPEAKER
The battles have been shifted from polling Units where electorates where the target population to the Senators and Members of the House of Representatives elect.This is to intensify lobbying by those gunning for the Principal Offices in search for support and votes.This is coming before the official Communication of the rulling All Progressive Congress on Which Zone should have what.Considering the major Political Factors that brought us together as an indivisible nation in 1914. there is need to place the Igbo extraction (South East) and the middle belt ( North Central) into the main Stream of the next Government to curtail the growing insinuations of marginalization along religion and ethnicity especially now that both the President and the Vice President elect are of the Same Faith.
The rulling party must resist all pressures from all other interest groups selling the narratives of exclusion that the South East should not be given the opportunity to Produce the next Senate President.The party as an institution need to understand the intricacies that goes with managing the complicated nature where injustice take the center stage of the political System. Addressing the divisive tendencies of Nigeria must be a priority and it is only on the basis of fair and equitable distribution of power that Peace can be easily maintain in Nigeria.
The inability for APC and PDP to win the Majority of the Votes in the South East,Part of South South and Some States of the North Central was Projected long before the February 25th Presidential elections owing to the growing Political agitations.In build up to the Inauguration of the 10th National Assembly,there is need to take into account of the need to bring together the South East and North Central into the Center.
The office of the Senate President and Speaker of the House of Representatives are critical in running the affairs of the country and considering the Geopolitical Zones in question will put on holds the agitations that are of religion,regional and ethnic bigotries.
Peter Obi’s Movement comprised these aggrieved groups who feel marginalized in running the affairs of the Government of Nigeria and the position of APC NEC is key in dusting these tensions.
Consequently,the top contenders for the hot seat are the current Senate President,Ahmed Ibrahim Lawan (Yobe North),Ali Ndume (Borno South), Akpabio Godswill (Akwa-Ibom North), Orji Uzoh Kalu (Abia North), Jibrin Barau (Kano-North), and Mohammed Sani Musa (Niger-East).
In the green Chamber,The Deputy Speaker Idris Wase (NC) Aliyu Betara (NE),Yusuf Gagdi(NC), Benjamin Kalu (SE), Tajudeen Abbas (NW) and Abdulraheem Olawuyi (NC) are listed as the front runners for the Office of the Speaker of the 10th House of Representatives. Sen. Ahmad Lawan,Sen.Ndume and Rep. Aliyu Betara are all from the North East that has the Vice President elect Senator Kashim Shettima.
The North Central,the North East and South East have had at one time or the other Senate Presidents in the course of Nigeria’s new democratic experience.Now as its stands, South West (President elect) while the North East (VP elect).This seem to be a replica of the 1999 Political formula and for Power balancing,The need to Zone the Senate Presidency to the South East and the Office of the Speaker to North Central cannot be overemphasize.
The North West should Produce the DSP while the South South should have the DS in that order. The Former Governor of Abia State and Senate Chief Whip of the 9th Senate and Senator Representing Abia North, Senator Orji Urzo Kalu and the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives Rt. Hon. Ahmed Idris Maje have both been tip to win should these exalted Offices are zone to the SE and NC.
The looming danger ahead of the inauguration of the 10th National Assembly is the likely repeat of the Saraki/Dogara Film shoot that Produced both the Senate President and the Speaker against the wishes of the rulling Party. The only way to avoid this scenario again is to lobby the opposition to ensure that the Imperatives of a United Nigeria Priorities the Zoning arrangements of the party.
The President elect is a Pan Nigerian and will ensure that the incoming National Assembly
address the growing Political discussion of Marginalization and reflect the syndromes that will accommodate the religious,regional and ethnic nationalities.In a bid to have every Section of the country on board,The SE and NC stands out,this is the road map for sustaining a Prosperous nation where Nigerians cut according to their needs in a country they called their own.
Danaudi, National President of Arewa Youths Advocate for Peace and Unity Initiative Writes from Bauchi via danaudicomrade@gmail.com.
