Wike Meets Akpabio, Seeks To Produce Minority Leader In Senate, House Of Reps

Former Governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Wike, held a six-hour-long meeting with Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, on Thursday, ahead of the Senate’s resumption on July 4, 2023.

Wike’s extended meeting is reportedly aimed at preventing the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, from nominating Minority leaders for the National Assembly’s upper and lower legislative chambers.

The discussion took place in the Senate President’s office and involved key political figures.

Alongside Wike and Akpabio, others in attendance included Deputy Senate President, Senator Jibrin Barau; Senator Abdullahi Abubakar Gumel, recently appointed as the Senior Special Assistant on National Assembly Matters (Senate); Senator Jibrin Isah from Kogi East Senatorial District; and Senator Salihu Mustapha from Kwara Central Senatorial District.

Wike proposed nominating the Minority leader of the 10th Senate from his faction, bypassing the PDP national organ’s usual handling of the nomination.

Although he didn’t share his thoughts with journalists after the meeting, a confidential source that spoke with Daily Post disclosed that Wike argued for his faction to nominate Senate and House of Representatives Minority leaders.

Whether the Senate President agreed with Wike’s proposition remains uncertain.

However, traditionally, the choice of Majority and Minority Leaders in the legislative chambers has been handled by the political party organ.

The source revealed, “Wike was only serious about his faction producing the principal officers but didn’t reveal his potential choices. He is very serious about securing support from the National Assembly’s leadership and membership from other minority political parties in both the Senate and the House of Representatives. () ”

Presently, the APC has 59 Senators, PDP 36, Labour Party 8, New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) 2, Social Democratic Party (SDP) 2, APGA 1, and YPP 1.