Nigeria’s ruling party secures top parliament posts | Tellwell Newspaper
Tellwell Newspaper, Abuja – Nigeria:
Nigeria’s ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) party candidate on Tuesday emerged as the country’s Senate president after the inauguration of the new National Assembly following this year’s election.
New President Bola Ahmed Tinubu took office on May 29 after a highly contested February presidential election that opposition parties are challenging in court.
Tinubu’s APC now holds the majority of seats in both chambers of the National Assembly.
APC’s Godswill Akpabio, a 61-year-old representing the southern state of Akwa Ibom, was selected on Tuesday as the upper chamber’s president.
Akpabio, who served two terms as governor of Akwa Ibom State, promised to work closely with lawmakers across the eight political parries represented in parliament to help control insecurity and economic woes.
“This is the first time in the Nigerian senate that you have eight political parties seated together,” he said.
“The country is at a crossroad; we are grappling with a number of difficulties. We have just inherited an economy that requires renewal, revitalization.”
As Senate President, he is Nigeria’s third most senior political leader after Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima.
The ruling APC still holds the largest number of seats in the 109-member Senate with 59 senators, followed by opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) which has 36 seats. In all, the opposition parties have 50 senators.
APC also leads in the lower chamber with 162 seats in the 360-member House of Representatives.
Members of the Nigerian lower chamber also elected the candidate of the ruling party, Abass Tajudeen, as its speaker.
Tinubu, a former Lagos state governor and businessman, has placed the country’s security and economic situation at the top of his government’s to-do list.
AFP
