10th National Assembly: Akpabio Only Preferred Choice Not Anointed Candidate – Ndume

Ali Ndume, a senator from Borno South District, stated on Tuesday that the All Progressives Congress National Working Committee’s selection of Godswill Akpabio as Senate President of the 10th National Assembly does not mean that Akpabio is the party’s “anointed” choice.

Ndume made this statement while appearing on “The Morning Show” on Arise TV.

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The lawmaker was reacting to the party’s declaration of Akpabio’s nomination as the leader of the 10th Assembly.

Objectv Media, on Monday, reports that while Akpabio was nominated for Senate President, the party nominated Abbas Tajudeen as the Speaker of the House of Representatives.

According to Ndume, Akpabio is merely the party’s chosen candidate; this does not automatically make him the leader of the House. He added that the senators would still need to cast a vote to choose the leader of the red house.

He said, “I don’t think anointed is the right word to use. The APC has Akpabio as its preferred candidate, that would be a better word,” he said.

“Not anointed but preferred candidate. Because if it is anointed then it is fait accompli, which is not the case. We have to go into the chamber and vote, and it can go anywhere.

“Akpabio is going to be first among the equals as president of the senate. It is going to take the remaining 108 of us to restore integrity to the Senate.”