The ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) on Tuesday defended its choice of Senator Godswill Akpabio as the Senate President ahead of the inauguration of the 10th National Assembly in June.
APC National Publicity Secretary, Felix Morka said the South-South zone which Akpabio represents has not produced a Senate President since the beginning of the Fourth Republic in 1999.
“I am from the South-South and I don’t see why the South-South is ineligible for consideration. After all, no Senate President has come from that region since 1999, since his dispensation,” Morka said in a Television programme.
“We haven’t had that. Other regions have had some representations. South-East for instance, five of them held that position from the South-East.
“That does not mean that the South-East is ineligible or unfit to produce the Senate President; every region of this country can.
“But there is something else that we are concerned about; it’s called national interest, it’s called equity, it’s called inclusion, it’s called a sense of ownership.
“The party is looking at some very solid parameters and ensuring that every region gets a fair share,” he added.
The APC National Working Committee had on Monday zoned the leadership of the 10th National Assembly.
The party organ zone the Senate President to the South-South, Senator Godswill Akpabio (Akwa Ibom); Deputy Senate President to the North-West, Senator Barau Jubrin (Kano).
Others are the Speaker of the House of Representatives (North-West): Abass Tajudeen (Kaduna), Deputy Speaker South East: Ben Kalu (Abia).
The APC spokesman said his party consulted with the greater majority of the National Assembly members-elect before the announcement, adding that the decision of the NWC is just a guidance ahead of the election of principal officers of the 10th National Assembly next month and not cast in stone.
The ruling APC, as a single party, has the highest number of members in both green and red chambers.