By Temitope Hassan
Members-elect from various opposition parties have unanimously chosen Tajudeen Abass and Benjamin Kalu as the Speaker and Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, respectively.
The decision was contained in a communique issued on Monday following a meeting of the faction of the opposition group at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel in Abuja.
The opposition parties in the house are namely the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Labour Party (LP), New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP), All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Young Progressives Party (YPP), Social Democratic Party (SDP), and African Democratic Congress (ADC).
Idu Igariwey, a ranking PDP member from Ebonyi State, and Alhassan Rurum, a member of the NNPP from Kano State, signed the communique.
“That in furtherance of our resolve to play a leading role in the formation of the leadership of the 10th Assembly and as a result of our diligent interactions with all aspirants for the position of Speaker and Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, we hereby resolve to support the duo of the Rt. Hon. Tajudeen Abbas and Rt. Hon Benjamin Kalu, respectively as Speaker and Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives.
“That we have found in the two persons of Tajudeen Abbas and Benjamin Kalu, a leadership that will allow for fairness and equity as well as provide an equal platform for all political parties represented in Parliament to have a say in the running of the legislature and expression of alternate views on issues of public interest.
“That in the next few days we will be meeting in a larger caucus of the minority parties to discuss and formalise the adoption of the Speaker and Deputy Speaker designates of the 10th Assembly of the House of Representatives,” the communique reads.
Igariwey urged all members-elect of the 10th assembly to unite in electing Abass and Kalu as the presiding officers of the House on June 13.
Recall that the All Progressives Congress (APC), the ruling party, had already thrown its weight behind Abass and Kalu for these leadership roles. However, this endorsement has faced opposition from other contenders and Civil Society Organisations (CSOs).
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