On Monday, we witnessed a change of baton as President Muhammadu Buhari handed over the reins of power to Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
In the next few days, Nigerians will witness the inauguration of the 10th National Assembly. Ahead of that, there is already a serious tussle for the leadership positions in the incoming assembly. At the Senate, the positions of the President of the Senate and the Deputy President of the Senate are up for grabs. At the House of Representatives, the seats for Speaker and Deputy Speaker are being hotly contested.
The battle appears to be fiercer at the Green Chamber where about a dozen ranking members-elect have indicated interest to contest for the Speaker’s seat.
Also, different groups among the members-elect sprang up with the Joint Task-10th Assembly, a coalition of both returning and new members-elect from all the eight political parties that have won seats in the incoming 10th House leading.
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The Joint Task-10th Assembly seeks to promote the independence of the Legislature; the inter-dependence of the Legislature and the Executive; legislation for good governance and grassroots impact; constituency outreach; equity and fairness among ranking and new members, and ensure unity, equity and fairness in the emergence of presiding and principal officers in line with best parliamentary practice.
The success of any administration depends largely on the kind of National Assembly leadership in place. Therefore, the resolve of the Joint Task-10th Assembly is for Nigeria’s unity and the stability of the 10th House.
On May 8, the leadership of the ruling APC came up with the zoning arrangement, ceding the positions of speaker and deputy speaker to the North West and the South East, and endorsed Rt. Hon. Tajudeen Abbas, representing Zaria Federal Constituency of Kaduna State, and Rt. Hon. Benjamin Okezie Kalu from Bende Federal Constituency of Abia State, for the two positions respectively.
The party also zoned the seat of the President of the Senate to the South South and that of the Deputy President of the Senate to the North West, endorsing Sen. Godswill Akpabio and Sen. Jibrin Barau, respectively.
President Tinubu has since endorsed the decision of the national leadership of the APC.
The truth is that no president would not have an interest in those he will work with as the leaders of the National Assembly. We are all witnesses to the kind of mess the 8th Assembly created for President Buhari, because of the sour relationship that existed between the Executive and the Legislature at that time, as the leadership emerged against the wishes of the ruling party.
Tajudeen Abbas is a prince from the Zazzau Emirate. He holds the traditional title of Iyan Zazzau. He first got elected to the House of Representatives in 2011 on the platform of the defunct Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) to represent Zaria Federal Constituency and won re-election in 2015, 2019 and 2023.
Before coming to the House, Tajudeen Abbas has had a distinguished career in both the public and private sectors. He had been a primary school teacher and later became a polytechnic and university lecturer at Nuhu Bamalli Polytechnic, Zaria and Kaduna State University (KASU).
He came into politics well prepared as he had already obtained several master’s degrees and a PhD in business administration management prior to his first election as a legislator.
In the 8th Assembly – between 2015 and 2019 – he held the record of a single member that sponsored the highest number of bills in the entire National Assembly. When he returned for the 9th House – from 2019 to date – Tajudeen Abbas singlehandedly sponsored a record-breaking 74 bills out of which 21 were signed into law.
Therefore, for a stable and united 10th House of Representatives that will give Tinubu the required support and cooperation, it is only expedient that members-elect of the 10th House queue behind Tajudeen Abbas and Benjamin Kalu to deliver the good governance that we all yearn for.
Ibrahim Abdullahi wrote this piece from Abuja.
