9th N’Assembly: Anxiety As Fresh Suit Seeks Reversal Of APC’s Zoning Of Leadership Positions
A fresh suit filed before the Federal High Court in Abuja on Thursday is seeking an order upturning the All Progressives Congress’ zoning arrangement for the principal officers of the soon-to-be proclaimed 9th National Assembly.
The suit filed by a group, Kingdom Human Rights Foundation International, and a member of the APC, Kenneth Uzochukwu, described the party’s zoning arrangement which they claimed excluded the South-East geo-political zone as “unconstitutional, unjust, discriminatory and clannish.”
The APC, which constitutes the majority in both the Senate and the House of Representatives, had adopted Senator Ahmed Lawan from Yobe State in the North-East zone as its candidate for the position of the Senate President; and Femi Gbajabiamila from Lagos State in the South-West zone as Speaker.
The plaintiffs noted in their suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/477/2019, that the party had also zoned the position of the Deputy Senate President to South-South; and that of the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives to North-Central.
They also noted that with President Muhammadu Buhari from the North-West; the Vice-President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo from the South-West; and the Acting Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Tanko Muhammad from the North-East, it implies that the South-East zone has been totally excluded from “the political arithmetic of Nigeria.”
They contended, through their lawyer, Mr. Kingdom Nnamdi, that this “breaches the express provisions, spirit and tenor of sections 14 (3) and (4) and 244 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended); and offends the Federal Character Principle of Nigeria”.
The APC, the National Assembly and the Federal Character Commission were joined in the suit as the first, second and third defendants, respectively.
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