TheCable

Yekini Nabena, deputy national publicity secretary of the All Progressives Congress (APC), has asked the ruling party to zone the deputy senate president  to the south-south and speaker to the north-central.

Speaking with journalists on Tuesday in Abuja, Nabena said the party must provide a fair and justifiable zoning arrangement for the ninth national assembly leadership.

The deputy spokesman said if the party did not get it right now, 2023 elections might turn out to be a free-for-all in the ruling party.

“The APC has elected national assembly members from all geo-political zones of the country. Hence, the party’s leadership and indeed the presidency must take deliberate efforts to provide a fair and justifiable zoning arrangement for the ninth national assembly leadership,” he said.

“The zoning arrangement must also respect the fact that the north-west and south-west has already produced the president and vice-president respectively.

“So, for equity and adherence to the principle of federal character which is a constitutional requirement, the positions of senate president, deputy senate president, speaker and deputy speaker of the house of representatives in the incoming 9th national assembly must be occupied by APC members from the remaining four geo-political regions of the country.

“The deputy senate president should be zoned to the south-south while the speaker and deputy speaker of the house of Representatives should be zoned to the north-central and south-east in any order agreed by the party’s leadership.”

Nabena’s suggestion is different from that of his party’s as the APC has already zoned the speakership to the south-west.