GEJ, Ekweremadu, Akpabio clash over NASS offices

Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) senators appear to be following the footsteps of their All Progressives Congress (APC) counterparts as crisis looms in the opposition party over allocation of principal offices, especially that of Minority Leader.

The development has pitched some influential leaders of the party, including the immediate-past president, Dr Goodluck Jonathan and his wife, Patience, against the Deputy Senate President, Senator Ike Ekweremadu as well as Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State.

While Ekweremadu and Wike are said to be against the choice of Senator George Sekibo as Minority Leader as suggested by the former president, the immediate-past governor of Akwa-Ibom State and now senator, Godswill Akpabio, has thrown his hat in the ring for the same position.

Though Akpabio’s ambition is at variance with the Senate Rules on ranking, it has received the blessing of majority of the senators from the South-South, the zone the position has been allocated to.

Another senator from the zone, James Manager, who had initially been touted to take the position may not get it after all as money is expected to be a deciding factor ahead of the final decision that will be announced when the senate resumes plenary on July 21.

The PDP had on Tuesday, zoned minority positions in both chambers of the National Assembly to its various zonal caucuses. While the position of Minority Leader went to the South-South, North-central will produce Minority Whip.

Read Also: Cracks emerge in PDP govs’ rank

Deputy Minority Leader and Deputy Minority Whip went to North-East and South-West respectively, while in the House of Representatives, the party accepted the choice of Hon. Leo Ogor from South-South as Minority Leader.

The North-West will produce the Minority Whip while the South-East and North-East will produce Deputy Minority Leader and Deputy Minority Whip respectively.

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