President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s intervention on who becomes the Speaker of the House of Representatives seems to have paid off following the decision of two top contestants to step down.
At a meeting they attended with the president On Sunday, Aliyu Betara and Yusuf Gagdi agreed not to contest the Speakership election slated for Tuesday, January 13.
The coast, according to analysts now seems to have been cleared for Tajudeen Abass, the endorsed candidate of the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC.
The only serious contender now left to contest against Abass is the immediate Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Ahmed Idris Wase, who has vowed not to step down.
But those watching the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, insist that this is a positive development after weeks of serious horse trading and efforts by the party to put its house in order before election day in less than 72 hours.
Recall that President Tinubu and the APC leadership had endorsed Abbas and Benjamin Kalu as Speaker and Deputy Speaker, respectively.
In the president’s quest to ensure that the APC had a smooth sail in the NASS leadership tussle, President Tinubu, during the week met with lawmakers across party lines.
At the meetings attended by Vice President Kassim Shetima and other APC stalwarts, the president appealed to the lawmakers to accept the party’s choice for NASS leadership.
