APC spokesman says Ndigbo have nobody but themselves to blame for not clinching senate presidency

ALL Progressives Congress (APC) deputy publicity secretary Yekini Nabena has declared that Ndigbo have nobody but themselves to blame for not winning the race to produce the next senate president as they refused to vote in senators from across the southeast.

On May 29, Nigeria's ninth senate will assume office and Senator Ahmad Lawan, 60, the current senate majority leader, who has just been returned as the lawmaker representing Yobe North Senatorial District, is believed to be the favourite to land the plum job as the number three citizen. In 2015, he had been tipped to become senate president by Senator Bukola Saraki out-manoeuvred the APC leadership to clinch the job.

It is not yet clear which of Nigeria's geo-political zones the APC will allot the senate president too but it likely to be a straight fight between the northeast, north central and south-south geo-political zones. Other major contenders who have been linked with the senate presidency include Senator Ali Ndume of Borno South, Senator Francis Alimikhena and Senator Ovie Omo-Agege of Delta Central.

However, the southeast looks set to miss out as it has a unique problem in that none of its senator-elects are ranking senators returning for a second terms. Senator Ben Uwajumogu has been returned to represent the Imo North Senatorial District, while Dr Orji Uzor Kalu is elected to represent the Abia Central Senatorial District and Governor Rochas Okorocha is hoping to be confirmed as the senator elected to represent the Imo West Senatorial District.

None of the trio are ranking senators, however, with rules them out of the race for either senate president of deputy senate president. Earlier this week, Dr Kalu threatened that the party must make him the deputy senate president or he will contest for the senate presidency.

Mr Nabena said the party does not deserve any blame for not zoning the position of senate president or deputy senate president to the southeast and the geo-political zone should blame itself for queuing behind Alhaji Atiku Abubakar in the just concluded general elections. He added that while nobody is stopping Dr Kalu from contesting for the position of senate president, the reality is that he cannot win since the zoning arrangement does not favour him.

According to Mr Nabena, rather than getting angry with APC leadership, Dr Kalu should blame his people in the southeast for putting all their eggs in one basket by rejecting President Muhammadu Buhari and casting over 90% of their votes for Atiku. All the ranking senators returned from the southeast are from Alhaji Atiku Abubakar's Peoples Democratic Party.

Mr Nabena said: "Kalu can contest for the position of senate president but the issue is, can he win? Nobody is stopping him from contesting. Igbo people always play themselves out, so, Kalu cannot blame APC.

“He should blame his own people from the southeast because they don’t know how to play politics. They play politics like a one-way thing. They all voted for Atiku in the presidential election, so, now that Atiku lost, who will help people like Orji Kalu when 99.9% of them followed Atiku.

“So, what is Kalu crying for? He should go back to his people and educate them on how politics is played especially at the national level. They should play 50-50, so that if this one didn’t work, the other can work."