Coup de grace at NASS

 out of the earliest senators-elect who indicated interest for senate president position, Bukola Saraki  from
Kwara State was seen as PDP’s claim to the exalted office.   Senator George Akume from Benue State, on his own, was said to be anointed by tendencies loyal to ACN within the current ruling party. Both candidates are from north central geo-political zone. It is unclear at what point that Ahmad Lawan from Yobe state, northeastern Nigeria entered the race. But checks reveal that this ranking senator may all the while have been the dark horse as well as an ace card by the northern oligarchs to sway the votes in northern favour at last minute. And as northern aggregations in the political midwifery of APC were residues of CPC, Senator Lawan was seen by another school of thought as candidate of this CPC lining.
  Hence, the fight for who becomes senate president suddenly but surreptiously delved into a battle of “rival” blocs in the party with majority. The scenario that played out at the house of representatives for the position of speaker also followed similar path with the hostilities at the senate. Over six members of the new House from different geo-political zones jostled for the plum post. Hon Dino Melaye, Yakubu Dogara, Femi Gbajabiamila and others threw their hats iSENATOR Saraki and Hon. Dogara are not the candidates of APC and a majority of its national assembly members-elect for the positions of senate president and House speaker.
  The foregoing statement was attributed to Alh. Lai Mohammed, the National Publicity Secretary of APC. He was making the party's stance on the ides which swept through the inaugural proceedings of the 8th national assembly on Tuesday, June 9, 2015. Alh Mohammed went as far as describing the emergence of Senator Saraki and Hon. Dogara as the new helmsmen of the two chambers of Nigeria's senate and House of Representatives respectively as “ridicule” to APC.
  An instant poser races to front burner here. How does an emergence of two party men in legislative houses (under majority of the same party) become an “embarrassment” or even “ridicule” to the party?
  Investigations by National Light show that a line of remotely connected events, immediately subsequent to the last general elections, may partly or wholly unravel this seeming political anagram. For, indeed it is a tide that is poised to upstage apple carts of ruling APC. These events, it was learnt, coalesce in a reality stoic as it were that presently stares APC in its face.
  A primary facet to this cold reality stems from calculations which ab initio fostered APC's emergence from political cradle. It will be recalled that the party derived existence from a marriage of convenience between political allies and even strange bedfellows to dislodge PDP's foothold on power in Nigeria since May 29, 1999.            
  In this regard, powerbrokers across party divides mooted an idea of a Mega Party, an idea which in their estimations held the joker or credible way to wresting power from then ruling party – People's Democratic Party, PDP.
  Instructively, not many observers took arrowheads of this political permutation of a mega party serious. For those who preferred a skepticist front to amalgamation of opposition party elements, it was improbable for Nigerian politicians of divergent hues to come under one banner forsaking prebendalism and its warts.
  But like every idea whose time had come, these skeptics were forced to rethink when despite initial prenatal or formative challenges, following series of horse trading an amalgam of interests from existing parties gave birth  to APC. These parties are Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), Congress of Progressive Change (CPC), and All Nigerians People's Party (ANPP), splinter All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA) that melded into one party with protem positions under Chief Bisi Akande chairmanship shared to reflect their tendencies.
  Interestingly, statements credited to Senator Bola Tinubu (who was seen as main force that brought ACN camp into this merger, and who later emerged as national leader of APC) seemed to prove those in doubt wrong. “APC has come to stay. We are prepared to prove to the world that Nigerian politicians are capable of coming under one roof for the sustenance of our nascent democracy,” he told a cheering crowd of party faithfuls at APC's maiden convention at Eagle Square, Abuja.
  Not quite long afterwards, factional PDP elements under the aegis of new PDP fused into the APC fold.
  The rest, as the saying goes, is now history as dreams behind sentiments that ripened into APC resonated in an overwhelming victory for the party at the last general elections – from presidential, gubernatorial to legislative houses elections.
  However, victory dance and drumbeats of the winning party had hardly subsided when crevices began to appear around the APC orbit. Not a few onlookers dismissed these sudden but muted echoes of discordance as necessary post-natal discomfitures that are normal preludes to greater things to come in the life of new babies of destiny. Indeed many analyzed this trend as sign of greater glory to come for APC, citing initial teething problems that later paved its way to cradle, and ultimately to power. But the more this unwanted pregnancy was managed to avert eyes, the more it kept ripening and again continued coming to the fore.
  This continued until those hitherto crevices blossomed into cracks that have refused to be papered through. National Light learnt that an issue that brought these cracks to unrelated cynosures was the build up to who occupies the topmost stools at the two chambers of the National Assembly. It was also learnt that no sooner had this battle for “who” began than it snowballed into what political bloc – from those that aligned to form APC – should corner the two coveted seats to its narrower interest. This would later expose the underbellies of a party thrust to a dangerous powerplay by itnto the contest.
  It is noteworthy that at the teething stage of this conundrum, APC seemed “ensconced” while the then president-elect stated in no equivocal terms at different forums that he had no preference among candidates angling for key legislative posts at the two chambers.
  But as the June 9 inaugural date drew nearer, APC woke up from its seeming indifference. First, it lined up series of retreats aimed at galvanizing its members-elect of the federal legislature into a common party front. National Light learnt that top echelon of APC hierarchy hijacked these retreats to push for candidates anointed by its camp in the two races for speaker and senate president. Senator Bola Tinubu's name feature prominently in these subterranean wheeler-dealings like a recurring decimal.
  At this point, some aspirants began to withdraw for their contemporaries with more credible stake for the two positions. These withdrawals were followed by re-alignment of forces to, as much as politically expedient, include all interest groups in the scheme of things.
  Efforts by APC command to herd its members-elect into one house on this crucial issue met brickwalls. Major camps behind frontline candidates refused to budge as both camps opted for an open showdown on the floor of both chambers of National Assembly to determine who occupies the topmost stools. Alliances began to emerge as each camp weighed its aces en-route commanding roles of the federal legislature – leading to emergence of Like Mind Senators (LMS), for example, which ultimately coasted home with the two posts.
  But in a bid to whip its members into line, brandishing the doctrine of party supremacy, APC held a straw poll for the two prized offices at the International Conference Centre, Abuja on Saturday, June 6.  About 33 of 57 APC senators-elect present reportedly voted for Senator Ahmad Lawan, leaving Senator Saraki with 24. Senator Lawan therefore became the party's sole candidate for senate president election, and following the ides of the mock election for speakership, Hon. Gbajabaimila emerged as APC's candidate at the lower chambers.
  If the party hierarchy thought that it has laid all matters to top legislative positions to rest finally, it soon found out that the reality pointed to the contrary. First bombshell came from Saraki who alleged complicity against APC command, and vowed to further test his aspiration on the floor of senate. Hon. Dogara's own salvo descended with no less venom as he stormed out of the venue with his supporters in defiance. All efforts by President Muhammadu Buhari to rein in the rebellion from Germany, where he was guest of G7 summit, failed to appease the gladiators.  
  National Light further learnt that another fence-mending meeting at the auspices of Vice President Yemi Osinbajo was even met by more hostilities as those who lost out in the mock elections reportedly shunned it. It was at this juncture that APC realized the enormity of obstacles on its way to whipping its members-elect into line. Senator Saraki and Hon. Dogara, apparently buoyed by their recent romance with rump of PDP senators would have none of any calculus at variance with their individual aspiration. For this, they had no fear moving against their party direction. What, therefore, coalesced as coup de grace on the two floors of the National Assembly was a child of behind-the-scene algorithms accoutered with every trappings of coup de tat.
  Perhaps, the coup angle to the inauguration of 8th National Assembly knits a political anagram that may yet remain unraveled in the weeks and months ahead. It may be so, as not a few observers posit, because the political chess that suddenly turned an unwanted “dowager” like PDP into a game changer and beautiful bride still beats the eye. It is so, again, because only deft brinkmanship and filibuster would not only derail clear choices of the party in majority, but indeed hand momentum to its rival.
  For an analyst, “PDP has once again showed that it is lion of the political jungle of Nigeria,” he told National Light in an interview.
  “With this new development at the country's federal legislature, it will be tantamount to crass naivety for anyone to think of PDP as a party that lost out as no policy strategy will escape its contribution with a National Assembly whose leaderships owe their life to PDP,” he continued. Indeed, deputy senate president Ike Ekweremadu is still a card carrying member of PDP. And it is also believed in some quatres that had former senate president David Mark wanted, he would have returned to his seat as well. If this had happened, Nigeria would have been thrown back to Aminu Tambuwal precedent of the 7th National Assembly that just ended. It is owing to this development that a question may come.
  Is PDP returning to power?
  Perhaps, an answer may not come handy but the bottomline, National Light learnt, is that a “hybrid” leadership between parties not in any accord or alliance is set to swing into Nigeria's ever expanding political lexicons. This, of course, does not in anyway seem to enhance APC sentiments as cracks seem inevitable among contending power blocs in its ranks. With new PDP elements having cornered the legislative control, the battleline may have shifted to another critical aspect of its power sharing formula. And this is the fact that the ANPP tendency will also kick if it loses out in the race for who becomes Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF). Presently, its masthead on this point seems to be flitting on Chief Ogbonnaya Onu.
  Perhaps, again, the new president himself set the tone for this development by his inaugural speech. He had told Nigerians that he belonged to everybody; and that he belonged to nobody. “What this means,” the analyst continued, is that Buhari has cleverly told power mongers around the new government that his administration will not brook undue manipulations that may keep it as hostage to anyone or camp, whether under guises of party supremacy or cleavages.”
  Interestingly, not long after this speech, an emerging northern power bloc advised Chief Olusegun Obasanjo to come off Buhari's back. This camp, it seems, had to send this message as series of subterfuges emerge on daily basis as scramble for ministerial and other national appointments intensify, and heat up the polity. In another development, the president also sent subtle warning to governors who are angling for what positions their proxies will occupy in the soon to come federal establishment.
  Hence, it is common belief of broad spectrum of Nigerians that not only had PDP carried out parliamentary coup de grace, but indeed it is the political well-being of Nigeria.

by Mathew