As preparations for the inauguration of the tenth National Assembly slated for June 13, 2023, continue, a group of kinsmen of Godswill Akpabio – the All Progressives Congress (APC) consensus candidate for the position of Senate President – has called on the party to support his candidacy.
The Ntipe Ibibio Unity Mission said that it believes Akpabio is the best candidate for the job and that the ruling party should not give in to pressure from opponents.
Since Akpabio, the former governor of Akwa-Ibom state, was named consensus candidate, he has faced opposition from some groups within the party, who have been calling for the selection of an alternative.
Speaking at a press conference on Wednesday, Okon Mkpafit, convener of the Ntipe Ibibio Unity Mission, argued that Akpabio – a personality from the Southern Nigeria and South-South geopolitical zone of the country – was the most suitable candidate for the Senate presidency.
He added that Akpabio’s kinsmen have been working hard so that he will be appointed as the next Senate President in the tenth National Assembly, and urged the APC chieftains, members, and other contestants to lend their support to his candidacy.
Mkpafit also highlighted the fact that the last time the Senate presidency position went to the Southern Nigeria and South-South geopolitical zone was in 1979, when Senator Joseph Wayas emerged as the Senate President. He, therefore, urged all of the senators-elect to work together to ensure that their zone produces the next Senate President.
Mkpafit cautioned that any attempt to push Akpabio’s candidacy aside would be counterproductive and warned that it could have negative repercussions for the party. Instead, he advised that the APC stick with its original choice.
He also called on Nigerians to support the incoming president, Bola Tinubu, in efforts to build a prosperous and enviable nation.
