Speakership: Let The North East Have It - By Usman Isa Usman

No doubt, the 2015 general elections have ushered in the desired wind of change in our nanscent democracy.With this, it is expected that the 8th National Assembly would also live up to the expectations of Nigerians by bring on board credible leadership in line with the current trend in our body politic.

The Nigerian Network for Change Initiave, a group of credible Nigerians with followership from the All Progressives Congress (APC) is calling on the legislators elected into the 8th National Assembly to choose credible leaders for both the Senate and the House of Representatives.

As the race for the speakership of the House of Representatives heats up, numerous contenders, aspirants and ever pretenders to the exalted throne have emerged with their varying numbers of supporters, admirers and adherents jostling to present their respective candidates as the most suitably qualified for the plum job of presiding over 359 members drawn from cutting across all political, economic, social, religious and linguistic affiliations.

As permutations go, a lot of alignments and re-alignments across the geopolitical divides of the nation have been formed, reformed, discarded or shored up as the major gladiators square up for advantage while forging alliances and coalitions in order to emerge triumphant, come June 4, the date of inauguration of the House of Representatives, and indeed the whole National Assembly including the Senate.

While several geopolitical zones including the South West, South South, North West, North East and even North Central have indicated interest in occupying the speakership seat, many have harped on the template of equity, justice, fair play and de-marginalisation as a crucial crucible on which the selection of the House helmsman should be predicated upon, arguing that it is necessary to ensure that all parts of the country be given a sense of belonging in order to engender loyalty and unvarnished adherence to the Nigerian state among all if citizens regardless of creed, colour, tongue or geographical location.

For instance, out of all the zones angling for the speakership position, it is clear that the North – East has been the most marginalised and most short-changed from independence to date and most especially since the inception of our nascent democratic dispensation, 16 years ago.

The South West has since 1999 produced the President of the Federal Republic as well as the Speaker of the House of Representatives, namely; General Olusegun Obasanjo and Hon Dimeji Bankole respectively. The South South on it’s part has produced the President of the Federal Republic, Dr Goodluck Jonathan as well as two Deputy Speakers of the House of Representatives; Chief Austin Okpara and Chief Chibudom Nwuche. The North Central Zone has also had the benefit of bringing forth the President of the Senate, Dr David Mark for a record shattering eight years, while also producing two Deputy Senate Presidents, Dr Haruna Abubakar (of blessed memory) and Dr Ibrahim Mantu from Plateau State.

The North-East zone has produced the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt Hon Bayero Nafada and he served only one terms under the speakership of Rt Hon Dimeji Bankole. Even the South-East geopolitical zone which is not angling for the speakership seat has produced the Senate president for two terms though under different personalities unlike David Mark who has served out two legislative sessions.

From the foregoing analysis, it is clear even to a blind man that the North East has suffered undue injustice and political oppression to compound the high rate of poverty, illiteracy and insecurity that has bedeviled the region in recent times. Successive neglect by previous and present administrations has even led to the emergence of the Boko Haram insurgency which has further crippled socio-economic activities in the region, particularly in states like Borno, Adamawa, Yobe and even Gombe and Bauchi.

Comrade Usman is the National Co-ordinator, Nigerian Network for Change Initiative

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