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Room 819, Transcorp Hilton Hotel, Abuja, is the campaign secretariat of the Senate Leader, Senator Ahmad Lawan, the anointed candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) for the Senate Presidency of the 9th Assembly.
The posh apartment seems to be the most busy spot in the highbrow hotel, as it hosts more than 100 visitors per day and supposedly runs for 24 hours.
Like a palace, the high and mighty, the low and needy, visit for different reasons. Some would come with complaints and others will bring reports of happenings in other camps. Some others would come to pledge their loyalty in anticipation of future rewards and some would come to ensure that the party was not disgraced at the inauguration of the 9th Senate.
The office, according to sources, was set up after the leadership of the APC and the Presidency agreed and made public the candidature of Lawan for the Senate Presidency.
The National Working Committee (NWC) members, after meeting with the President Muhammadu Buhari and the 8th Senate Caucus on March 26, zoned the position of the Senate President to the North East and went further to state that Lawan was the preferred candidate for the position.Senator Lawan represents Yobe North, Yobe State of the North East geopolitical zone.
National Publicity Secretary of the APC, Mallam Lanre Issa-Onilu, who made the zoning decision public at a media interaction, said the NWC consulted widely before arriving at the decision.
“Enough consultations were made and that is why nobody can hold anything against the National Chairman, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole or members of the Working Committee,” Issa-Onilu said.
A visitor to Room 819, would meet both new and serving senators trooping in and out to see the anointed candidate or members of his campaign team. Among those in the campaign team are Senators Sabi Abdullahi (Niger) and Bello Mandiya (Katsina).Sunday Telegraph saw many supporters of the Lawan Project going and coming out of the room as well as exchanging banters. They included Senator-elect, Dr. Ifeanyi Uba (Anambra); Deputy Governor of Jigawa State, Senator-Elect, Ibrahim Hassan; Senator – Elect, Hon. Opeyemi Bamidele, (Ekiti); Senator Bello Mandiya (Katsina); former Senate Leader, Senator Tesilim Folarin (Oyo); Lekan Mustapha (Ogun); Senate Spokesperson, Senator Sabi Abdullahi (Niger) and former colleague of Senator Lawan in the House of Representatives, Hon. Chuma Nzeribe. The roll call was endless as there were beehive of activities within the room and on the floor of the campaign office.
Senator Mandiya, who has been a political ally of Senator Lawan, said his election as Senate President was a done deal.According to him, the Senators are with him (Lawan) because they wouldn’t want to go against the wishes of their party. The party’s position, he said, is supreme on party issues such as this one.
He said: “For those believing that what happened in 2015 would repeat itself, they would be in a shock as they would realise that APC has gone a little forward.”
In a brief chat, the Spokesperson of the campaign organisation, Senator Sabi Abdullahi said the Senate Presidency of was the project of some Senators before the party cued into it.
According to him, 15 Senators started the project of Senator Lawan Senate Presidency for the 9th Assembly before the party endorsed his candidature.
He said: “This campaign has received tremendous goodwill and at any rate, it is a campaign that was started by a collection of 15 senators made up mostly of returned and newly elected lawmakers , who formed the nucleus of reaching out to our colleagues, reaching out to our stakeholders – the media and other critical stakeholders – just to drum home the fact for the party to get it right this time around. We have unequivocally resolved to stand behind Senator Ahmed Lawan to be the next Senate President of the 9th Assembly.
Pleasantly enough, the party took the same man and also got the blessing of the presidency even though many people will not want to understand the dynamics.
“Lawan’s Presidency is a process and the process does not climax with one event. The party recommended to all what we should do. Ahmed Lawan is an event in the launching of processes of things that will happen before the D-Day, when we will match into the Chambers as Senators-elect to be inaugurated and invariably to also elect our preceding officers.
“So, for me having been a member of the 8th Senate and with very daunting task of being the spokesman, I think I will say that events leading to this time are quite distinct from 2015, whiçh clearly shows that the party is not only proactive, but also assertive.
“The party is negotiating and is calling on its members to act as party men and I think I will say so far so good. A number of our party members are listening and for us in the campaign, the campaign is not party based, it is senators-based -which means APC, PDP, YPP which are the three parties that have so far won seats in the 109 Upper chamber. We are reaching out to everybody and so far so good the response has been tremendous.”
On whether the campaign team is reaching out to governors and other stakeholders on the campaign, he said: “Yes, when I said we are reaching out to Senators and critical stakeholders, perhaps l did not break down who the stakeholders are. Governors are part of the critical stakeholders, also the National Working Committee of our party, including the media and even opinion molders and influencers in our social environment.
“So, for us, what we have succeeded in doing is to galvanize all interested parties to see the positive side and the goodness of Senator Ahmed Lawan Senate presidency. I think we are getting very encouraging and positive results in with that.”
On whether the party is anticipating a contest or walkover, the Senate spokesperson said: “One thing I will say for sure is that we are poised for victory and I have no doubt in mind that by the special grace of Allah, that on that day, we shall sworn in Senator Ahmed Lawan as Senate President, God’s willing.”
National Publicity Secretary of the APC, , Mallam Issa-Onilu, who made the zoning decision public at a media interaction, said the NWC consulted widely before arriving at the decision.
“Enough consultations were made and that is why nobody can hold anything against the National Chairman, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole or members of the Working Committee,” Issa-Onilu said.
On the allegations that the Senators of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party(PDP) are supporting a different candidate and will turn the tide against APC, Onilu said no such thing will happen.
According to him, some PDP Senators have cued into the choice of APC for the 9th Assembly Senate President.
“Let nobody deceive himself of any block votes any where. The party has spoken and the party will stand by its words on the Senate of 9th Assembly,” he said.
Onilu also dismissed the claims of Senator Mohammed Ali Ndume that he wrote to the party about his ambition to be the Senate President.
According to him, Ndume’s letter came a day before the party went to see the President, when he got wind of the NWC intention to see the President on the Senate President choice.
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