TheCable

Orji Kalu, senate chief whip, says he would not hesitate to serve as Nigeria’s president if given the opportunity by the electorate.

Kalu made the remark in Minna during a private visit to two former leaders of the country —  Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida and Abdulsalami Abubakar.

The former governor of Abia state said there was no zoning in the constitution of the All Progressives Congress (APC), adding that any person in the party can contest for the position of the president.

“I am still in the senate, and I will seek for re-election into the senate but if our people want me to serve as president I will not hesitate,” he said.

“Zoning is not a constitutional matter in APC. Any person can contest any post in APC.”

On the issue of insecurity in Nigeria, he alleged that the country’s security system is being sabotaged.

“It seems that there is a lot of sabotage in our security system,” he said.

He expressed optimism that the national assembly would continue to collaborate with the executive in tackling the security challenges in the country.

“We will address the issue of sabotage in the Nigeria security system,” he said.

Kalu was released from the Kuje Correctional Centre in June after spending five months in prison.

In December, the Lagos federal high court convicted the chief whip of money laundering to the tune of N7.1 billion.

He was arraigned by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) alongside Ude Jones Udeogu, a former director of finance and accounts in Abia.

However, on May 8, the supreme court nullified the conviction of Kalu and Udeogu on the grounds that Mohammed Idris, the trial judge, did not have jurisdiction to hear the matter since he had been elevated to the court of appeal.