Senate Presidency: Ndume remains adamant, gets Borno elders backing

Senator Ali Ndume has expressed its resolve to contest the senate president seat despite his party’s decision, the All Progressives Congress, to give the seat to Senator Ahmed Lawan.

Recall that the All Progressives Congress leadership had endorsed Senator Ahmed Lawan, the current Majority Leader of the Senate, to become the Senate President of the 9th National Assembly.

His decision was echoed on Monday in a statement issued by a group under the aegis of Concerned Borno Citizens.

The group said to be made up of governors, former ministers and other leaders of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Borno State, declared their unalloyed support for Senator Ndume’s aspiration to become the next Senate President.

In the statement signed by its spokesman, Alhaji Yakubu Umar, the group called on President Muhammadu Buhari to consider Ndume, a former Senate Majority Leader, for the position. It asked the President to also recognise that Borno state gave the APC over 90 per cent of votes during the just concluded general election.

It claimed that certain dark forces were seriously working on a plot to hijack the leadership of the 9th National Assembly for their selfish political gains, arguing that if the plot is allowed, could be highly counterproductive to the policies of the Buhari Presidency in its second term.

“President Buhari did not only agree that Ndume should contest but also endorsed him; which was what encouraged him to step out in preparation for the contest,” the statement said.

According to the group, Buhari should not abandon Ndume, not minding the political pressure from certain quarters.

“President Buhari in December last year unreservedly made an undertaking to handsomely reward any party member who works very hard for him to win his re-election bid.

“Our group which boasts of former governors, former ministers and other leaders of the APC in Borno State want Ndume to be considered for the position because our state gave the party over 90 per cent of the votes from the state in the just concluded election.

“President Buhari should not suffer further sabotage by allowing a wrong person to be elected as the Ninth Senate President.

“The President should personally subject antecedents of Senators Ndume and Lawan to scrutiny to determine who is more loyal, experienced or qualify to be Senate president.

“In terms of lawmaking administrative experience, Ndume was first a Minority Leader in the House of Representatives and later the Majority Leader in the Senate before Lawan,” the group said.