The battle for Senate presidency appears to have shifted between the North Central and North East geo-political zones among the most ranking members, following the Senate Standing Order that favours long years of service in Senate.
The 7th Senate is expected to come to an end about June 2 this year, while the Senate leadership is expected to be constituted for the 8th Senate within the week.
At present, the Senate presiding officer, Senate President, David Mark, is from Benue State of the North Central alongside the Senate Minority Leader, Senator George Akume, while Senator Abubakar Saraki who is also one of the contenders for the position, from Kwara State, is also of the North Central get-political zone.
But there is a political bloc from the North East that feels that the Senate presidency had been in the North Central for about eight years and even the Senate minority leader and the people behind this ‘power must rotate’, are projecting Senator Ahmad Lawan from Yobe State.
Vanguard’s Newspaper reports that Also from the North East and a possible candidate for the Senate presidency is Senator Danjuma Goje, a former governor of Gombe State.
With a simple majority in the chamber, lawmakers of the All Progressives Congress, APC, are expected to fill these positions: the Senate President, his deputy, Senate Majority Leader, deputy and the Chief Whip and deputy.
It was gathered that those projecting the emergence of Senator Lawan from North East were said to have taken their argument to the APC leaders that since the North Central had been occupying the seat 2007,”it was time to look elsewhere and that in the spirit of cohesion and sense of unity, the North East should occupy post.
