Senator Ifeanyi Ubah on Monday maintained that the South-East region deserves the Senate Presidency seat despite the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) zoning the position to the South-South.
The lawmaker representing Anambra South argued that if the South-East produces the next leader of the upper lawmaking body, it would help in strengthening the unity of the country.
“For me and our people from the South-East, we are still very strong in contesting for the office of the Senate President of Nigeria for the 10th Senate. That is our position for now,” he said on Channels Television’s Politics Today.
“So, in the course of consultation, we would continue to update Nigerians about our position. But for now, I am still in this studio, the position of the South-East caucus [of the Senate] is that we are going to contest for the Senate President of Nigeria.”
His comment comes hours after the APC zoned the key leadership of the Senate, sidelining the South-East region which has been clamouring for the Senate Presidency to be zoned to the region.
Despite the move, Senator Ubah maintained that South-East senators have unanimously agreed that the position should come to the region.
“That is our position for now,” he said, listing Orji Kalu and Osita Izunaso as capable of taking the post.
He said lawmakers from the region will, however, meet to finalise plans to pick a candidate.
While the South-East gave the ruling APC the least votes in the 2023 presidential election, Senator Ubah argued that for the sake of fairness, there should be a “balance of the equation” in the distribution of key positions in Nigeria.
“I think after the presidential election, I think equity demands that we would sit down and look at every region because we are talking about Nigeria,” the lawmaker added.
“Nigeria is not divided on who brings the vote and who does not bring the vote. Are we not part of Nigeria?”
“We need it in order to balance the equation,” he concluded.