Former Minister of Niger Delta Affairs Senator Godswill Akpabio has informed President Muhammadu Buhari of his intention to become the President of the 10th Senate.
Akpabio, who spoke after meeting with the President at his official residence, also said as President of the Senate, he would work closely with President-Elect Asiwaju Bola Tinubu to empower Nigerians, particularly the youths.
The Senator-elect, who said besides visiting to inform the President of his intent to lead the next Senate, he also used the visit to express his appreciation to him for giving him the opportunity to serve as Minister in his administration, adding that he presented his Certificate of Return to the number one citizen.
When asked what his programme for Nigerians would be if he emerges President of the Senate, Akpabio said “A lot of reforms, Akpabio is known as an uncommon transformer. Akpabio is known as a man who is results-oriented. You will recall that when I was a governor, I brought a lot of innovations to bear, infrastructurally, educationally, socially and otherwise and also in terms of human empowerment.
“I intend to bring a lot of reforms into the Senate, in the ways and manners we do business, to assist the next administration to succeed. We will be very thorough in doing everything; we’ll bring about loyalty to the Constitution, and we’ll bring about loyalty to Nigerians.”
No fewer than 39 out of the 58 senators elected across the various political parties in Northern Nigeria met Sunday night and resolved that their region must produce the Senate President in the 10th National Assembly.
A ranking senator from the North-west revealed the information to THISDAY Monday morning strictly on conditions of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of their discussion.
The senator said the senators-elect maintained that the north deserves the number three position in the country because the region delivered the highest number of votes for the President-elect, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, in the February 25 presidential election.
He said his colleagues also agreed to hold an expanded meeting that would involve all the 58 elected senators from the three geopolitical zones of Nigeria in the second week of May.
The elected federal lawmakers, he added, would engage their counterparts from the Southern part of the country on the need to support their aspiration.
Part of their resolution which he sent to THISDAY read: “Northern senators-elect met today Sunday, May 30, 2023 and deliberated amongst themselves across party lines. Before the meeting was adjourned the senators-elect agreed to the following resolutions.
“That such meeting should be expanded by extending invitation to all elected senators from the three geo-political zones of North-central, North-east and North-west to attend the next meeting.
“The senators all agreed to work together irrespective of party, religion or zonal affiliations in the clamour for effective leadership in the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
“That the senators-elect all have agreed that the President of the Senate shall emerge from the Northern part of the country.
“That it should be on record the Northern part of the country contributed more votes to the victory of APC in the 2023 general election hence the need to have the office of the President of the Senate of the 10th Assembly.
“That the Northern senators agreed to mutually extend its cooperation with its southern counterparts in providing good governance in Nigeria as an essential tool to its stability and growth.”
The senator added that the Forum had also delegated two of their ranking members to meet with the President-elect, Tinubu, to relay their resolutions to him.
The first autopsies Monday on corpses found in mass graves linked to a Kenyan pastor suspected of inciting followers to fast to death confirm starvation as the cause of death, although some victims were asphyxiated, the authorities said.
Experts carrying out the first post-mortems on more than 100 bodies unearthed in a coastal forest examined nine children aged one to 10 as well as one woman.
“Most of them had features of starvation,” chief government pathologist Johansen Oduor said after the autopsies took place in a hospital morgue at the town of Malindi.
“We saw features of people who have not eaten — there was no food in the stomach, the layer of fat was very small,” he said.
“We have had a look at all their bodies and all their organs were intact. None was missing so far.”
But, Oduor added, “From what we are hearing, there was some indication that they were being smothered, that can be one of the causes of asphyxiation. It was in two children. “
In a case that erupted last month, horrifying a deeply religious nation, cult leader Paul Mackenzie Nthenge is accused of urging followers to find God through starvation.
The provisional death toll stands at 109, which includes a small number of people who were found alive but died on their way to the hospital.
Source: Vanguard