Leader of the House of Representatives, Hon. Alhassan Ado Doguwa has appealed to members of the G-6 to withdraw from the speakership contest and support Hon. Tajudeen Abbas and Hon. Benjamin Kalu who have been endorsed by the All Progressives Congress (APC) for speaker and deputy speaker of the 10th Assembly.
Doguwa made the appeal Wednesday during the valedictory of the 9th House.
Members of the G-6, a group of aspirants opposing the endorsement of Abbas and Kalu include Deputy speaker Ahmed Idris Wase, chairman, committee on appropriation, Hon. Muktar Betara, chairman of the committee on navy, Hon. Yusuf Gagdi, chairman, committee on water resources, Hon. Sada Soli, erstwhile chairman, committee on security and national intelligence, Hon. Aminu Sani Jaji and chairman of the committee on people living with disabilities, Hon. Miriam Onuoha.
The majority leader said there was a need for the aggrieved aspirants to reason with the party for a smooth transition.
He said “It is in this light, I want to urge members like me who are still in the ring contesting to please see the light of reasoning to also step down in the interest of a seamless transition from the leadership here to the next Assembly.
“I am doing this, because I was part of the members who first of all started contesting for the Speakership position. Mr Speaker, I am by all standards qualified to be the Speaker.
“But, I want to believe that speakership is always an act of God. It is given by God by the will of the members of the House of Representatives. We cannot have two speakers at the same time”.
But while presenting his valedictory speech, Deputy Speaker Wase insisted that he was still in the race and would emerge speaker come June 13.
He said his decision to remain in the contest was in fulfilment of a prophecy by the former governor of old Plateau State and former chairman of PDP, late Solomon Lar who predicted his coming to the House of Representatives and becoming the deputy speaker and possibility of his speaker.
He said, “Of course, I want to appreciate my political leaders, among whom I would say is Solomon Lar who, when I was contesting 2007, I went to him and he prophesied the number of times I will come to this Assembly and I will tell this crowd and to the world, that he said, I will come to the Assembly in the number of times and prophesied even the number of leadership that I will attain and the deputy speakership and he prophesied next when I return, and I believe I will be speaker and I believe Insha Allah, I will be the speaker of the Green Chambers”.
