Ahead of the inauguration of the 10th National Assembly by June, the lawmaker representing Egbeda/Ona Ara Federal Constituency in Oyo State, Akin Alabi, has made a case for a Southern Christian to emerge as Senate President.
Some newly elected Senators have already expressed interest for the position. They include Orji Uzor Kalu, Jibrin Barau, Sani Musa, Godswill Akpabio, Dave Umahi, Osita Izunaso and Ahmad Lawan.
READ ALSO: Senate Presidency: I Will Step Down On Tinubu’s Wish, Says Kalu
Although the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) is yet to zone principal offices of the yet-to-be-inaugurated parliament, Alabi expect that the next Senate President should be a Southerner.
Speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today programme on Tuesday, Alabi said since the President-Elect, Bola Tinubu and his vice, Kashim Shettima are Muslims, it is right for a Christian to head the nation’s parliament.
APC lawmaker Akin Alabi says the Senate President should come from the South-East or South-South region. #PoliticsToday#CTVTweets pic.twitter.com/gCtEZwb5z0
— Channels Television (@channelstv) March 28, 2023
He said, “We understand that when the President-Elect was selecting his running mate, there were considerations like ‘he is a Muslim. Islam is the minority from the South. If he chooses a Christian running mate, that’s a minority from the North’.
“So, it may be a bit not-too-strong ticket, so we went for a Muslim-Muslim. That might rule out the top guys from the North-West because those that have already signified are Muslims.
“If we are going to spread it, it has to go to the South – a Christian Southerner. Not South-West like I said, it is going to be South-East or South-South,” he stated.
