Former Zamfara State Governor and Senator-elect, Zamfara West, Abdul Aziz Yari has declared that the zoning template of the All Progressives Congress for Presiding Officers of the National Assembly was in conflict with certain provisions of the Constitution.
Yari made the submission on Tuesday while speaking as a guest on Arise TV monitored programme, The Morning Show.
The lawmaker maintained that the leadership of the 10th National Assembly considering the favoured candidates was against the Federal Character principle as enshrined in the Constitution.
In an apparent reference to the agitation of religious balancing which certain stakeholders in the APC said informed the zoning arrangement, Senator Yari frowned at the rationale as he said the APC zoning formula was alien and unknown to the 1999 Constitution (as amended) as the nation’s law book only provides for federal character in sharing of offices, not religious balancing.
He further submitted that an arrangement which would ensure that all the heads of arms of government would be from the southern part of the country was skewed against the North.
He said: “I am particularly talking about the APC, if they decide to zone (Senate leadership positions), we ask them a question, on what do you base the zoning? Have you taken the federal character into cognizance, where the President, the Chief Justice of Nigeria and the National Assembly chairman, the three arms of government, are in one place?
“The present Chief Justice of Nigeria is from Oyo State; Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the President-elect is from Lagos State, and Akpabio is from Akwa Ibom State at the same time. While the next Chief Justice of the Federation (Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun) is also going to be from the South-West.
“So, have you ever seen, let’s say since 1960, whether this kind of thing has happened during the Shagari era, coming to Obasanjo, Yar’Adua and Jonathan? It only happened during Buhari’s time slightly before CJN Onnoghen took over the Judiciary for some time.
“Now it happens that (with APC zoning arrangement), all the three arms of government are in the Southern part of the country. How could that be fair to Northern Nigeria?” Yari queried.
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