Opposition political parties meeting under the umbrella of ‘Greater Majority’ have rescheduled meetings to adopt a new strategy to decide who emerges the Speaker of the House of Representatives.
There have been rancour since the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, announced its zoning formula for National Assembly positions.
Ahead of the convening of the 10th National Assembly, the APC had zoned its Senate President to the Southsouth, naming Godswill Akpabio as its candidate while it also zoned the deputy Senate president position to the Northwest with Jibrin Barau as its preferred choice.
Similarly, the party zoned its speakership position to the Northwest with Tajudeen Abbas as its preferred candidate while the speakership position was announced for the Southeast with Benjamin Kalu
as its choice.
This has thrown the party into crisis with protests within and outside the party.
The situation has bolstered the opposition parties who have begun to meet and set up a strategic committee a fortnight ago on how to profit from the internal wrangling in the APC.
Buoyed by the intense protest from some aspirants in the APC, agitating under G-7 movement, the opposition political parties hope that its control of the House of Representatives and slim minority in the Senate could play a crucial role and have thus announced a series of meetings to harmonise their positions along regional lines.
A statement signed on Monday morning by the spokesmen of the Greater Majority in the House said the meeting of the minority parties and regional caucus has been suspended.
Instead, it announced that the meetings would now be held on a regional basis in a statement co-signed by Hon. Afam Victor Ogene (PDP), Hon. Dachung Bagos (LP) and Hon. Gaza Jonathan Gbefwi (SDP) for the Greater Majority.
According to the statement, “there will be regional minority caucuses meeting of North and South with party leaders.”
It added that both regions – North and South – would hold their meetings at the same time on Monday, 15 May in Abuja.
“All Members-Elect are to be in attendance as crucial issues will be discussed with party leaders,” the statement added.
The Whistler