Nigeria’s President, Muhammadu Buhari, has expressed his readiness to work with the elected Senate President and Speaker of the House of representatives.
President Buhari’s comments came after the National Assembly on Tuesday elected Senator Bukola Saraki, as the Senate President and Honourable Yakubu Dogara, as the Speaker.
The election of both principal officers was against the choice of the All Progressives Congress, which had chosen Senator Ahmed Lawan as its candidate for Senate Presidency and Honourbale Femi Gabjabiamila for the position of the Speaker.
The party’s leadership has expressed its displeasure with the outcome of the election, calling it treachery.
But the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, said in a statement that President Buhari would have preferred that the process of electing the leaders, as initiated and concluded by the All Progressives Congress (APC), had been followed.
Enduring Positive Change
The President took the view that a constitutional process had somewhat occurred.
“President Buhari had said in an earlier statement that he did not have any preferred candidate for the Senate and the House of Representatives, and that he was willing to work with whoever the lawmakers elected.
“That sentiment still stands. Though he would have preferred the new leaders to have emerged through the process established by the party,” Adesina said.
The President’s spokesman further said that the stability of the nation’s constitutional order and overall interest of the common man were uppermost on President Buhari’s mind, as far as the National Assembly elections were concerned.
President Buhari then called on all the elected representatives of the people to focus on the enormous task of bringing enduring positive change to the lives of Nigerians.
