Nigeria can’t have senate president, speaker from same religion – Shettima

The vice president-elect Kashim Shettima has shared his thoughts on the recent battle of the next leadership of the red chamber.

According to him, Nigeria cannot have the Senate President and Speaker from the same religion as it will spark outrage and Islamisation claims.

He noted that the All Progressives Congress (APC) plans to prevent a situation where all the top officials of the incoming administration would be of the same faith.

Reports indicates that the ruling APC National Working Committee had nominated Godswill Akpabio, a former Minister of Niger Delta affairs, as the President of the Senate and Abbas Tajudeen, a ranking member as the House of Representatives Speaker.

However, the nominations in 10th National Assembly has caused a stir in the party, as many members of the party vying for the role have faulted and rejected the party’s position on the upcoming national assembly leadership.

Speaking at a meeting with some of the House of Representatives members-elect on Friday, he urged the lawmakers-elect to accept the zoning arrangement of the All Progressives Congress (APC) for the leadership of the 10th national assembly.

He said; "The circumstance could validate the negative narrative of the Islamisation agenda of Nigeria.

"The leadership of the forthcoming national assembly must be inclusive because the stability of the nation is much more important than any other consideration.

“What we are trying to avoid is a situation whereby the number one citizen, number two citizen, the number three citizen, the number four citizen, and the number four citizen are all of the same faith. That will lend credence, and validate the negative narrative of the Islamisation agenda of Nigeria.

"This is why my principal, a fair-minded leader, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu is more inclined towards having the number three citizen from the South/south or the south-east. Even in the current circumstance that we find ourselves in, the stability of the nation is much more important than any other consideration.

“All other considerations have to be relegated to the background because we are talking about the stability of the nation.

“We are talking about inclusivity, we are talking about togetherness because nation-building is a continuous work in progress and politics is about perception, it is about optics. I am quite glad that Benjamin Kalu will emerge as the deputy speaker. The hope for the black man rests with the people of this country,” the vice-president-elect said.