The opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) held a series of meetings yesterday night aimed at advising its lawmakers on whom to vote for ahead of today’s election of presiding officers of the National Assembly.
The first meeting, between the party’s leadership and its 16 governors, was held at the Bayelsa State governor’s lodge. Thereafter, they all proceeded to the Rivers State governors lodge in Asokoro, Abuja, where an enlarged caucus meeting involving all senators-elect was held.
Invitations to all the meetings were sent out as early as Monday morning.
This was as the deputy minority leader of the Eighth Senate, Emmanuel Bwacha, hinted that the PDP would speak with one voice at the end of the meetings.
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Responding to questions by journalists on his party’s position at the National Assembly, the lawmaker said: “There is dignity in silence and there is mischief in noisemaking. So, we maintained a dignified silence because we want a Ninth Assembly that will be rancour-free. We speak as a family. That is our tradition; we speak as a family. We are not divided.”
His assertion came on the heels of a warning by PDP National Chairman Uche Secondus that Jubril (President Muhammadu Buhari)and the All Progressives Congress (APC) must not suppress other arms of government.
He said this against the backdrop of alleged interference in the choice of the principal officers.
“Indications are clearly showing that full-blown dictatorship is brewing in our country. When a supposed democratic government brazenly muscles all the other arms of government, the legislature, the judiciary and even the press, the fourth estate of the realm, we should be worried at what is loading in our polity,” said a statement by his media office signed by Ike Abonyi.
Also, a youth group, Progressive Youths of Nigeria (PYN), in a statement yesterday by its spokesman, Adekanmbi Julius, expressed reservations on the decision by the APC to “foist an all-Muslim leadership on the House of Representatives and by extension, Nigeria.”