By Ebriku John Friday
Civil society group under the auspices of, South-South Solidarity Group, SSSG, Saturday urged Senators Abdulaziz Yari, Orji Kalu and Osita Izunaso, to step down for Senator Godswill Akpabio, to emerge President of the 10th Senate.
The SSSG made the call during a world press conference held in Abuja, where its Convener, Peter Ikpen Ilefa, in an address pointed out that Akpabio relishes an immeasurable excellent ideas on how best to complement the President Bola Tinubu, in his drive to reengineering the Nigerian economy, security architecture, including the failing educational system, and other issues negatively affecting development across the country.
Ilefa further stated that with Akpabio and Senator Barau as Deputy Senate President, Nigeria will experience dividends of democracy through quality legislation and robust oversight functions.
He said: “Once again, we, the critical stakeholders within the political space of the South-Southern Nigeria under the aegis of the South-South Solidarity Group have found it necessary to call on all Nigerians on the need to build a rock-solid foundation for the purposeful administration of our country under the new dawn in our body polity.
“For the purpose of emphasis ours is the umbrella body of ALL socio-political organisations in the South-South region of Nigeria, while PANDEF is our clearing house.
“We are here to inundate the nation on the imperatives of the emergence of the new leadership of the 10th national assembly and the focus here today as usual is to demonstrate our solidarity for the emergence of distinguished Senator Godswill Obot Akpabio’s as the next Senate President of Nigeria and Sen. Jibrin Barau as Deputy Senate President.
“But for the purpose of National Solidarity, we call on Senators Yari, Orji and Osita to step down and support the consensus candidate of the APC for the interest of peace and respect to the Leadership of the party led by Mr. President. Today is the turn of Akpabio and Barau, tomorrow could be the turn of any of them and we will still be here to lend our onerous voice.
“Anything short of stepping down, would mean fragrant disrespect to Mr. President who is determined to serve Nigeria by building a team he feels, will compliment his drive for a better and prosperous Nigeria.”
According to him, the group has repeatedly called on Nigerians through the Senators-elect in the new dispensation to rally support for Senator Akpabio and Sen. Barau to mount the podium of the leadership of the 10th Senate come June 13, 2023.
“That day is the day destiny has beckoned on our candidate to lead the Nigerian Senate, and we call on the senators-elect to resist all attempts at cutting shot the dream of a new Nigeria.
“Senator Akpabio/Barau leadership of the 10th Nigerian Senate promises to be the pillar of support for the smooth administration of Nigeria under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR.
“Over the years, both Sen Akpabio and Sen Barau have shown the world unrivalled capacity of being superlative leaders. Little wonder the Stability Group led by Senator Ali Ndume is rallying support behind their aspirations as Senate President and Deputy Senate President.
“Growing through the ranks of politics in Nigeria, Senator Akpabio has demonstrated immense competence in the management of human affairs, and this, he is bringing on board his leadership of the 10th Senate”, he said.
However, the group alleged that there are plans by some contestants to bribe senators-elect with housing estate in Abuja “to vote for them in their defiant move to undermine the All Progressives Congress, APC decision ceding the position of the 10th Senate Presidency to South-Southern Nigeria.
“We however sympathize with this move and also seize this opportunity to plead with our dear senators-elect that Nigerians are watching them to shun all forms of monetary inducement and vote rather for competence, justice, fairness, correctness and a senate president that can stabilize the country.
“Our dear Senators-elect should consider the front burner issue in Nigeria, which is to elect a competent Christian to compliment the Muslim/Muslim ticket of the present administration.”
Read the full text of the world press conference below…
BEING TEXT OF THE SPEECH DELIVERED BY THE CONVENER, SOUTH-SOUTH SOLIDARITY GROUP AT THE WORLD PRESS CONFERENCE AT THE NUJ SECRETARIAT, ABUJA JUNE 10, 2023.
APC, SENATOR AKPABIO AND SEN BARAU, 10TH SENATE LEADERSHIP, AND THE REST OF US…THE NEED TO BUILD A GREATER NIGERIA
Ladies and gentlemen of the Nigerian Press
Once again, we, the critical stakeholders within the political space of the South-Southern Nigeria under the aegis of the South-South Solidarity Group have found it necessary to call on all Nigerians on the need to build a rock-solid foundation for the purposeful administration of our country under the new dawn in our body polity.
For the purpose of emphasis ours is the umbrella body of ALL socio-political organisations in the South-South region of Nigeria, while PANDEF is our clearing house.
We are here to inundate the nation on the imperatives of the emergence of the new leadership of the 10th national assembly and the focus here today as usual is to demonstrate our solidarity for the emergence of distinguished Senator Godswill Obot Akpabio’s as the next Senate President of Nigeria and Sen. Jibrin Barau as Deputy Senate President.
It’s on record that the SSSG has repeatedly called on Nigerians through the Senators-elect in the new dispension to rally support for Senator Akpabio and Sen. Barau to mount the podium of the leadership of the 10th Senate come June 13, 2023. That day is the day destiny has beckoned on our candidate to lead the Nigerian Senate, and we call on the senators-elect to resist all attempts at cutting shot the dream of a new Nigeria.
Senator Akpabio/Barau leadership of the 10th Nigerian Senate promises to be the pillar of support for the smooth administration of Nigeria under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR. Over the years, both Sen Akpabio and Sen Barau have shown the world unrivalled capacity of being superlative leaders. Little wonder the Stability Group led by Senator Ali Ndume is rallying support behind their aspirations as Senate President and Deputy Senate President.
Growing through the ranks of politics in Nigeria, Senator Akpabio has demonstrated immense competence in the management of human affairs, and this, he is bringing on board his leadership of the 10th Senate.
Akpabio relishes an immeasurable excellent ideas on how best to complement the President in his drive to reengineering the Nigerian economy, security architecture, our failing educational system, exiting the masses of our people from acute poverty, youth development and generally bring dividends of democracy to the doorstep of every Nigerian through quality legislation and robust oversight functions.
Senator Akpabio has relentlessly been on the Vanguard of uplifting humanity all his life and examples abound in Akwa Ibom State where he led his people out of ‘Egypt’ to the promised land of massive infrastructural development, superlative medical facilities, educational growth cutting down insecurity to manageable level and writing the name of that state in the map of one of the fastest infrastructurally developing states in the country.
What else do Nigerians want other than a man who will make Nigeria work again by joining hands with the executive and judicial arms of government to exit the nation out of the woods of rejection by the citizenry.
To Akpabio, instilling confidence and love in the hearts of Nigerians for their nation and building a culture of loyalty, patriotism and solidarity in the masses of our people particularly, the youths in his maverick administration of the Senate is a task not insurmountable. He has promised to join hands with the Renewed Hope team to build a nation that we can be proud of.
APPEAL TO SENATORS YARI, ORJI AND OSITA.
South-South Solidarity Group agrees that, it is within the rights of senators to seek leadership of the house irrespective of the zone, culture or religious affiliation a senator maybe affiliated with. But for the purpose of National Solidarity, we call on Senators Yari, Orji and Osita to step down and support the consensus candidate of the APC for the interest of peace and respect to the Leadership of the party led by Mr. President. Today is the turn of Akpabio and Barau, tomorrow could be the turn of any of them and we will still be here to lend our onerous voice.
Anything short of stepping down, would mean fragrant disrespect to Mr. President who is determined to serve Nigeria by building a team he feels, will compliment his drive for a better andnd prosperous Nigeria.
In this vein, we want to thank His Excellency, President Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR for his preparedness in leadership. It is only a prepared President that in less than two weeks of his administration will achieve the feat he has achieved so far. We salute Mr President with the nature of appointment so far, spreading it across Nigeria on the principle of Federal Character and we congratulate most profoundly Immediate past Speaker of the 9th House of Representatives Rt. Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila on his appointment as Chief of Staff to the President and His Excellency, George Akume on his appointment as Secretary to the Government of the Federation. Their appointment resonates hope for a better Nigeria.
Conversely, SSSG want to use this medium to back the decision of the Federal Government in removing Fuel Subsidy and appeal to Mr. President to attend more seriously to the issues of increasing the minimum wage and providing palliatives to Nigerians as a means to cushion the effect of the hardship Nigerians are going through occasioned by the removal of Fuel Subsidy. SSSG believes that, Mr President is fully in-charge and knows what he is doing, and very soon Nigerians will begin to reap the bountiful harvest of his purposeful administration.
We are patriotic, and just like Senator Godswill Akpabio and Sen Jibrin Barau, we have belief in the indivisible entity called Nigeria, and we are not arrogant about this. SSSG rides on the unity and progress of our nation with our hope renewed. We have the unwavering confidence that Nigeria with President Tinubu and Senator Akpabio leading their separate arms of government in no time will be exited from the woods of backwardness in the comity of nations.
NO SENATOR VOTE SHOULD BE FOR SALE.
On the grapevine, our group has discovered the plan being orchestrated by some contestants who have allegedly bought a whole housing estate in Abuja ostensibly to bribe senators-elect to vote for them in their defiant move to undermine the All Progressives Congress, APC decision ceding the position of the 10th Senate Presidency to South-Southern Nigeria. We however sympathize with this move and also seize this opportunity to plead with our dear senators-elect that Nigerians are watching them to shun all forms of monetary inducement and vote rather for competence, justice, fairness, correctness and a senate president that can stabilize the country. Our dear Senators-elect should consider the front burner issue in Nigeria, which is to elect a competent Christian to compliment the Muslim/Muslim ticket of the present administration.
Unequivocally, the APC and President Tinubu have made their choice of the 10th Senate President in Senator Akpabio /Barau known, with the President and his party stamping their feet on the ground over their choice but for reasons of disobedience to party decision, empty rascality, arrogance, nonchalant and unbridled attitude, supposed respectable party men have chosen the path of ignominy in this regard.
They have chosen to call the bluff of the party that thrusted them up to their respective positions, we call on them to have a rethink and submit themselves totally to the will of the party.
The Senators-elect are impervious to bribery, corruption, manipulations of any kind, dishonesty…and will rather tow the line of decency, patriotism, inclusiveness, respect for their party, solidarity and loyalty to their constituents.
No amount of inducement can make this category of senators-elect fall for such a greek-gift.
In view of the foregoing, if the allegation of planned bribery by some Senators is true to the tone of buying houses for who ever votes for them, we call on the Economic and Finacial Crimes Commision, EFCC, the Nigeria Police Force, and the Department of State Security, DSS to launch an indepth investigation into this huge threat against the sanctity of our National Assembly by a handful number of persons. When found wanting, they should be immediately reined in and taken before the law for their inordinate ambition to compromise the integrity of the hallowed chamber. Never again would Nigerians fold their hands, stand aloof and watch disgruntled elements ride roughshod on our collective sensibilities.
On Akpabio and Barau, we stand!
CONCLUSION
We the leadership of SSSG wish to express our gratitude to God, President Tinubu, the APC, Senators-elect and the broad spectrum of Nigerians for standing solidly behind Senators Akpabio and Barau who by the grace of providence shall be known and addressed as the Senate President and Deputy Senate President by June 13, 2023 going forward.
We are also hugely indebted in gratitude to PANDEF, Governors El-rufai, Babajide Sanwo-olu, Ogbeni Olurotimi Akeredolu; Umar Bago and all others who have seen reasons to trust with confidence our candidates for the Senate Presidency.
Additionally, we cannot but extend our profound thanks to former governor Nyesom Wike and others like him who crave a greater and egalitarian united Nigeria where nepotism, tribalism, corruption, and other social vices are rejected and relegated to background. It is not over until it is all over. We crave your sustained resolute stand behind Senator Akpabio for Senate Presidency.
Lastly we that our Grand patron, Patroness and Patrons, Hon Chief Martin Orim, Hon Princess Otanya Odey, Engr Ben Ogede respectively and others for making today’s World Press Conference a reality. And thank you gentlemen of the press for honouring our invitation.
Long Live the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
Thanks, and God bless.
Signed:
Peter Ikpen Ilefa
Convener
