By Sani Danaudi Mohammed
The just Concluded national elections will go down in history as the most pluralized along these lines. The increasing Political assertions, agitations and calls for balancing of power along religion and regions without regards to the Personality of the legislators portrays a danger model of the upcoming 10th National Assembly. It will require a legislator with a sound mind and legislative experience to redeem the image of the green Chamber to support the incoming President to move the country forward.In doing that,the rulling APC and the President elect must look beyond the level of ethnic and religion balancing in Zoning the Principal Offices of the 10th National Assembly.
The rulling All Progressive Congress is yet to officially announce the zoning of the Principal Offices of the 10th National Assembly which are due for inauguration on 13th June,2023.
A number of Members of the House of Representatives has so far declared their intensions for the office of the Speaker. The President elect and the APC have been advised to ensure that legislative experience, capabilities and competency form its priorities and basis of zoning it formula rather than just playing to gallery of power balancing.It is on the above mentioned insinuations that, the
North Central Region of Nigeria is standing as the favorite zone to Produce the 10th Speaker.
Apart from Presenting the best legislative minds in the current assembly,the region Contribution to the party’s victory at the Presidential elections cannot over emphasize. For all intent and purposes,those jostling for the office of the Speaker are worth Scrutining.At the level of Senate,The likes of Senator Barau Jibrin from Kano (North West ),Orji Urzo Kalu from Abi (South East), Sani Musa from Niger (North Central), Goodwill Akpabio from Akwa Ibom and host of others have declared for Senate Presidency. Indication has emerged that for power balancing and inclusion,the South South or South East regions are likely to produce the next President of the Senate when the party’s NEC meet to ratify the Zoning in the coming weeks.
The tendency of the Northern region flipping the positions of the Vice President and the Speaker of the House of Representatives are eminent on the fact that the current Vice President Professor Yemi Osinbanjo and Speaker Femi Gbajabiamila are both of the Southern extraction.The North in its quest to have the next Speaker must be beyond Power balancing and expediency arrangements to have the best. The Noth should not sleep to the gallery of favouritism at this time when highly ranked and experience legislators like Rt. Hon. Ahmed Idris Maje are favoured by the odds for been the most credible and competent to leads the 10th House of Representatives from are the North Central Region.
However, the current DS of the House of Representatives Rt. Ahmed Idris Wase (Plateau) Rt. Hon. Muktar Aliyu Betara (Borno) ,Rt. Hon. Yusuf Babayo Gagdi (Plateau ),Hon. Abbas Tajuddeen (Kaduna ),Sada Soli (Katsina), Makki Yalleman (Jigawa), Benjamin Kalu (Abia), Raheem Tunji Olawuyi (Kwara ) have been listed as contenders from the North. Although, Many have written Betara off this race considering the Presence of Senator Kashim Shettima already wrapping off the slot of the North East region as Vice President elect. The Osinbanjo/Baja Scenario is still hanging on the neck of the power players.
He is standing as the most exceptionally prepared been the current DS.He stands a better Chance considering his legislative experience as Someone who worked closely with the Speaker of the 9th House of Representatives Rt.Hon. Femi Gbajabiamilia.This article examines the three contenders from the North Central. Out of all the contestants within the region, the Deputy Speaker decades wealth of Experience are counting on him to emerge as the next Speaker of the house of Representatives Representatives.
RT. HON.IDRIS MAJE WASE (PLATEAU STATE)
He has won his fifth term as Member of the Federal House of Representatives. He was elected to Represents the good people of Wase Federal Constituency in 2007 and has been a Chairman and Member of different Committees. He was the Chairman of Federal Character and later Deputy House Leader. He has served under Environment,Emergency & Disaster, Public Account, Area Council, Housing and Habitat,Capital Market,Poverty Alleviation, Petroleum (Upstream), Justice,Public Petitions, Labour and Youth. He is currently the Deputy Speaker of the 9th House of Representatives and his nomination was unopposed with 358 Votes.
Rt. Hon. Ahmed Idris Maje is no doubt, a household name on the Plateau and Nigeria Politics whose contributions to the growth and development of the legislative community in Nigeria are well documented in the green Chamber archives for the unborn generation to read. He is one of the current Political players who played a significant roles to the victory of his Party Presidential Candidate.He remains a force to be reckon with in the North Central Region since his surgeon to legislative schemes of the nation and the world at large as the Deputy Speaker of the ECOWAS Parliament.
He remain the only son of Plateau after Late Senators Wash Pam and Ibrahim Mantu,both former deputy Senate Presidents (of blessed memories).He is the only Person to occupy the exalted position of a presiding officer of the green chambers. As the Deputy Speaker,he has lobbied and attracted a number of key projects to the State. He has worked towards ensuring that Plateau State returns to its Pride of Place as the home of Peace and tourism.His team leading the terrain of his Campaign team cut cross all and Sundry.
He is been portrayed as the symbol of hope,Peace and national Unity working along with legislative minds likes Rep. Dachung Musa Bagos from Plateau,Hon. Abubakar Hassan Fulata from Jigawa,Hon. Femi Bamisile from Ekiti and many other ranking Members. This is a strong indication that,he is assembling in his team the best brains irrespective of their tribes, Regions or religious identities for a United 10th House of Representatives.If experience is the way to go by in this election,then it is the North Central Region producing the next Speaker is none negotiable.He has done remarkably well in the areas of infrastructural development through Federal Government interventions.Construction of Jarmai-Bashar in Plateau to Karim Lamido in Taraba State,Bashar-Nasarawa-Yola Wakat roads.
The greatest achievements of are his efforts towards the establishment of two the National Orthopedic Hospitals in the North Central and North East in situated at Jos and Jalingo Respectively.The National Cancer Centre domiciled at the University of Jos in which 3billion naira has already been released for take off, the National Open University campus in Wase, Universal Basic Education Smart Projects and Many more still counting to his name.He has a number of bills and motions to his name and has Secured hundreds of Permanent and Pensionable Federal Appointments to eminently qualified Nigerians within and within outside his Constituency.
RT. HON. YUSUF ADAMU GAGDI (PLATEAU STATE)
He is a politician and Member of the All Progressives Congress from Plateau State,Nigeria.He is now a Second term Member of the Federal House of Representatives Representing Pankshin/Kanam/Kanke federal constituency of Plateau State in the 9th National Assembly.He has sponsored a number of bills, eminent among them is the bill that upgraded the Federal College of Education Pankshin to a Federal University of Education.
Gagdi is a young chap and currently the Chairman,House of Representatives Committee on Navy.He is one of the contender for the Speakership of the 10th Assembly From the North Central.He is one of the advocate that are Spearheading efforts aimed at having the seat zoned to the North Central region of the country.A former Plateau State House of Assembly Deputy Speaker who are in the race for the seat,if the zoning favours North Central.
RAHEEM TUNJI OLAWUYI (KWARA STATE)
He is a member of the Federal House of Representatives,Representing Ekiti/Irepodun/Isin/and Oke-Ero federal constituency of Kwara State. He is the House Committee Chairman on Emergency and Disaster Preparedness.In 2018, He contested across the four councils in Kwara and was declared in November as having been won.He is equally one of the contenders of the office of the Speaker of the 10th House of Representatives.
CONCLUSION/SUGGESTIONS
The imperative of the institution of the Parliament across the world has increased and improved over the years making Representative governance and democracy the ideal system to beat.This is because no democracy grows beyond the level of its legislature.The success of every democracy rests squarely on the quality of the parliament hence the need to always have in place a solid legislative Players. A leader with sound a good track records of leading and managing diverse and Secular States like the Nigerian Parliament that of House of Representatives with 360 Constituencies.
This is where Hon. Ahmed Idris Maje stands out among his contemporaries From the North down to the South.As a Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, He is Well Prepared and will be ready from day one with the business of the House.It has been suggested that, long as decades of experience will count in the forthcoming Speakership race ,then the current Deputy Speaker has an edge for the great opportunity he has to served as the Deputy Presiding officer.
The Option before the APC NEC is to sustain the current tempo of 9th House of Representatives where the current Deputy Speaker who is directly part of its success to emerge as the 10th Speaker. Zoning the Office of the Speaker to the North Central should be inevitable by APC NEC to avoid the repeat of the 2015 Dogara clip with opposition teaming behind Betara from the North East.They should into the inauguration with it fingers crossed.
The mandate for an emerging Credible 10th House of Representatives has fallen into the bag of Rt. Hon. Ahmed Idris Maje and North Central as the odds favoring him as the next Speaker.He has been in the midst of all legislative bills and motions passed in the current Assembly and his emergence as the number Presiding officer will be an easy ride for the incoming President Asiwaju Bola Ahmad Both Yusuf Adamu Gagdi and Raheem Tunji Olawuyi are both Capable hands but with the current Deputy Speaker gunning for the office Speaker,his chances are more brighter long as the zoning favours the North Central.
Danaudi, National President of Arewa Youths Advocate for Peace and Unity Initiative Writes from Bauchi via danaudicomrade@gmail.com.
