The race for the Presidency of the 10th Senate seems to have taken a new twist with the likelihood of zoning the position to the North-west by the leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the possibility of Senator Jibrin Barau getting the plum job.
As authoritatively gathered by Blueprint, the decision to zone the position to North- west, was reached last night by the leadership of the party after consulting and convincing the president-elect and vice-president-elect on the need for that.
Sources at the meeting confided in Blueprint that the need to zone the Senate Presidency to the North-west arose from the quantum of votes given to the president-elect, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, during the last presidential election as against what he got from the South-east or the South-south zones which were earlier considered for the position.
One of the sources at the strategic meeting said some top leaders of the party from the North-west made strong requests in that respect by maintaining that the zone should be rewarded for its performance during the presidential election.
He said, “They went further to say having the Senate President from the North- west will spur the zone to give His Excellency more votes in his reelection in 2027, God-willing.
“It would amount to a great mistake if the position of the President of the Senate is given to zones where we got very little votes. This should not be done due to the pressure mounted by those who are calling for the so-called ‘religious balance.’ This country has gone beyond this kind of sentiment.
“There must be a reward for performance otherwise; God forbid, our party will be doomed in future elections. We should not rob Peter to pay Paul. We must take a cue on how H.E. Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu won the primary and the general elections to become the president-elect.
“He succeeded based on his foresight, hard-work and above all merit. He never resorted to evoking religious sentiment. This was emphasized in his statement to the nation yesterday that his cabinet shall be “devoid of ethnic and religious considerations. There are several other positions that could go to such zones.”
The decision to zone the Senate Presidency to the North-west has now opened a flurry of support for Senator Barau Jibrin (APC, Kano North) who is the most ranking amongst the aspirants for the Senate Presidency, having earlier been in the House of Representatives and coming to the Senate for third consecutive time now.
His other contender from the North-central, Sani Musa, is just coming for the second term while his two main competitors from the South, Senators Orji Uzor Kalu and Godswill Akpabio, are only two-termers.
Senator Jibrin Barau is the chairman, Senate Committee on Appropriation in the current 9th Senate.