Yakassai, in an interview with reporters in Kano on Tuesday, expressed surprise that the leadership of the governing All Progressives Congress (APC) did not consider the ethnic nationality in its office sharing.
Senator Ike Ekweremadu of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), from the South East, emerged as the Deputy Senate President out of the crisis that followed sharp disagreements in the APC on the candidates that were to fill the positions.
His emergence is still being hotly resisted by the APC.
Yakasai described the sharing of positions of the APC as lop-sided, and an indication that the governing party is subsuming national interests under personal interests.
His words: “It is quite shocking that at the end of the meeting of some All Progressives Congress leaders at Aso Rock, called by President Muhammadu Buhari, Femi Gbajamiala, who contested the Speakership against Yakubu Dogora and lost, emerged the Leader of the House.
“I can recall that before President Buhari’s intervention, the Dogara group accepted to concede the position of the Leader of the House to the Gbajamiala’s group, but with the condition that the position will not go to the South-West.”
Yakassai said further: “It was surprising that after the meeting between the National Chairman of APC, John Odigie-Oyegun, Gbajabiamiala and Dogara at the Villa, they came back and did otherwise.
“Again, immediately after Femi (Gbajabiamila) was announced the Leader of the House, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu paid a visit to the Villa apparently to thank President Buhari for intervening in favour of Femi Gbajamiala.
“Now, in the House leadership, South-West has two major slots and the South-East has nothing. This is not a good development.”
Yakasai, who was Political Adviser to former President Shehu Shagari, warned that with the set up in the House of Representatives, those now clamouring for the removal of Senator Ekweremadu as Deputy Senate President, should be wary of the consequences.
According to him, Ekweremadu is the only representative of the South-East in the National Assembly leadership.
He advised Buhari to be conscious of the marginalisation already suffered by the South-East while constituting his cabinet so as to ensure proper representation of that region in the government of the day.
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