Kashim Shettima, the Vice President-elect, has given his nod to the zoning plan of the All Progressives Congress (APC) for the 10th National Assembly, stating that the appointment of Godswill Akpabio and Jibrin Barau for Senate President and Deputy President, respectively, would ensure stability in Nigeria. Shettima made the endorsement in Abuja while addressing Akpabio, Barau, and over 70 Senators-elect who visited him. Shettima affirmed that politics is supposed to unite people and not divide them, and urged that the second-highest position in the land be given to the Christian faith to ensure stability and national cohesion.
He applauded the party leadership for choosing Senator Godswill Akpabio, whom he referred to as his uncommon brother and an honourable man of integrity, to be the number three citizen of Nigeria. Shettima also revealed that he planned to reach out to other Senate presidential aspirants who may be unhappy with the APC’s choice for the position.
Meanwhile, former Minority Leader of the Senate, Senator Godswill Akpabio, noted that his support group is made up of members from different political parties who came together to promote the success of the Tinubu/Shettima administration as the success of Nigeria. Akpabio also remarked that the Stability Group is not there because the party zoned the Senate presidency to the most senior Senator from the South-South, but to ensure national cohesion and the stability of the country.
The pressure groups that emerged in the run-up to the inauguration of the 10th National Assembly indicated that there were intra and inter-party alliances in the House, as several pressure groups vied for positions. On May 8, 2023, the National Working Committee (NWC) of the APC released the zoning formula for the leadership positions in the National Assembly, with Godswill Akpabio (Akwa-Ibom/South-South) emerging as the Senate President, while Jibrin Barau (Kano/North-West) was chosen as the Deputy President of the Senate.
