thisday0520

18
ONTHEWATCH
THISDAY • WEDNESDAY, MAY 20, 2015
MIDWEEKPOLITICS
How Feasible is Dogara’s Speakership Bid?
The battle to succeed Aminu Waziri Tambuwal as Speaker of the House of
Representatives has reached the home-stretch. Ademola Adeyemo however
examines the chances of Hon Yakubu Dogara in the midst of the intrigues
and horse-trading
From Lagos to Abuja, political horsetrading
has been intensified in the
last few weeks as persons elected
to serve as members of the eighth
session of the National Assembly
strategies to choose a new leadership
for the legislative arm of government.
In the House of Representatives, stakes have
gone a notch higher considering the fact that
Nigerians have shown more interest in who
becomes Speaker than at any other time in
recent years. This interest is understandable
bearing in mind the rebellious manner the
House produced its leadership four years ago.
Speaker Aminu Waziri Tambuwal and his
deputy, Emeka Ihedioha, defied the zoning
arrangement of the Peoples Democratic Party
(PDP) to emerge leaders of the House. The
move, kicked against by President Goodluck
Jonathan and leading members of his party,
set the stage for what many considered the
assertion of the independence of the House
in the four years of their administration.
With the Tambuwal rebellion in mind,
Nigerians are now watching with bated breath
how the new leadership will emerge. Similarly,
attention has been firmly fixed on the caliber
of persons aspiring to be the number four
citizen in the new dispensation.
Already, no fewer than five lawmakers
have indicated interest in the bid to succeed
Tambuwal. Few days ago, a three-term member
from Bauchi State, Hon Yakubu Dogara, announced
his bid for the position. His supporters
have described him as fearless, incorruptible,
intellectually sound and pro-people.
Dogara, a Northern Christian representing
a Muslim majority Bogoro/Dass/Tafawa
Balewa Federal Constituency in Bauchi State,
told reporters in Abuja that he was the right
person for the job. But the question now is:
on what premise has he based his aspiration?
The APC victory in the just concluded elections
may very well be described as a joint effort
between four out of six geo-political zones: the
North-West, contributing the highest number
of votes, followed by the North-East, North
Central and South-West, in that order. With
the President-elect from the North-West and
his deputy from the South-West, Dogara’s
supporters reckon that in the spirit of equity,
the other key positions of numbers three and
four citizens should be filled by people from
the North-Central and North-East.
They reckoned that now is the right time
to allow the North-East, a region that has
never produced Speaker or Senate President,
to produce the next Speaker.
Hon Mukhtar Betara, a member of the House
from Borno State and Dogara’s supporter, told
reporters recently that despite being under
Many are of the opinion
that the lawyer-turned
politician has a rich CV
that can hold on its own
anywhere. The question
now is: does he have
the political dexterity
to persuade his 359
colleagues in the House to
entrust their leadership to
him? The answer will come
to the fore in a few weeks
Dogara…counting on track record
constant threat from Boko Haram, the people
of North-East Nigeria defied the threat of
bombs and other forms of mayhem to vote
for Mr. Buhari.
“So a Speaker from the North-East would
go a long way in reminding Nigerians from
that troubled region that they have not been
forgotten and still remain as key stakeholders
in the Nigerian Project. It would be a way to
acknowledge their suffering and show appreciation
for their sacrifice and ultimately,
serve as a solemn promise that the security
challenge will be at the forefront of issues,”
Betara opined.
Despite the prevalent perception of Northerners
as a homogenous group by most Nigerians in
the South, there are dozens of ethnic nationalities
in Northern Nigeria and Northerners are not
all Muslims.
The Muslim/Christian divide in the North
had previously been a basis for political
differences but this time around, Northern
Christians supported the APC and the candidacy
of Buhari, with large numbers recorded in
Christian stronghold in states like Plateau,
Bauchi, Adamawa, Yobe, Borno and Taraba
among others.
According to many in the House of Representatives,
the North-east has the highest
concentration of minority ethnic groups, with
some states having average of three tribes
within each local government. They argued
that one good way to silence critics of the APC
and proponents of the Hausa/Fulani “Born
to Rule” conspiracy is to choose a Speaker
that will represent the interests of Northern
Christians while simultaneously representing
the many ethnic minorities in the North.
Speaking on Dogara’s aspiration, Hon
Umar Bago, from Niger State, said if there
is one lawmaker that can consolidate on the
achievements recorded by the 7th Assembly
under the leadership of Tambuwal and make
the House more efficient and responsive to
Nigerians’ needs, it is Dogara.
He added: “Dogara’s sojourn in the House
has been strongly pro-people. Since 2007 that
he came to the House, he never wavered in
his pro-people stand and is today one of the
most respected lawmakers in the National Assembly.
Staying true to his legislative aims,
he sponsored the Corporate Manslaughter
Bill in 2010 to check negligence in corporate
organisations, which inadvertently leads to
loss of lives.”
Dogara has headed the House Services
Committee since 2010, and as a plus not one
scandal has occurred under his watch. He also
headed the House Committee on Customs and
Excise, and was said to have turned down a
bribe of five million dollars offered by some
special interest seeking to conceal the truth.
He has also been on the House Committees
on Judiciary, Capital Markets, Foreign Affairs,
Rural Development and Power among others.
He has also sponsored motions against the
indiscriminate and illegal granting of waivers
by the federal government.
Many are of the opinion that the lawyer-turned
politician has a rich CV that can hold on its
own anywhere. The question now is: does he
have the political dexterity to persuade his
359 colleagues in the House to entrust their
leadership to him? The answer will come to
the fore in a few weeks.