In a recent turn of events, the reported plots to impeach Senate President Godswill Akpabio have taken a significant step forward.
It has come to light that over ten former governors currently serving in the upper chamber, along with a coalition of civic organisations, are actively calling for Akpabio’s impeachment.
On Tuesday, pro-Akpabio senators were reported to have initiated a troubleshooting mission among their colleagues.
Some of them are said to be contemplating involving the All Progressives Congress (APC) National Working Committee (NWC), led by Dr. Abdullahi Ganduje, in the ongoing discussions regarding the potential impeachment.
These developments indicate a growing rift within the Senate and a heightened level of political manoeuvring surrounding the fate of Senate President Godswill Akpabio. As the situation continues to evolve, political observers are closely watching the unfolding drama within the Nigerian Senate.
“The party is just reading a lot of things but we have heard that some of the senators are thinking of meeting with our NWC to help resolve the issue”, said an APC official who said the party had not been officially informed about Akpabio’s travails.
Coalition for Parliamentary Democracy CPD asked the Senate President to step down, having reportedly fallen out of favour with his colleagues in the Senate.
CPD, which was reacting to claims from Senator Akpabio’s office that “one South-South Governor” was behind the impeachment threat to remove him from office, counseled Senator Akpabio to stop pointing fingers of accusation and rather come clean on why his colleagues want him out.
In a recent statement issued by its National Coordinator, Dr. Menike Johnson, the Coalition for Political Decency (CPD) has accused Senator Akpabio of attempting to inflame the political climate by shifting blame, even as his fellow senators have cited his inability to fulfill the responsibilities of a Presiding Officer and his failure to provide transparent and credible leadership as the primary reasons for their move to impeach him.
“As Parliamentary watchers, we believe that Senator Akpabio should face the issues raised by his colleagues including allegations of lack of transparency, violation of elementary rudiments, conventions and processes of presiding over the Senate, diminishing the integrity of the Senate on financial matters and claims of preferentialism in the management of the Senate.
“The attempt to overheat the polity by blaming external individuals is therefore a self-indicting measure that does not provide the much-expected answers to very critical issue of leadership failure raised by senators against the embattled Senate President.
“Having admitted that he has lost favour with his colleagues; and having no answers to the very serious issues raised by the Senators which borders on leadership failure, we counsel Senator Akpabio to save the nation further trouble by stepping down as Senate President.
“Our nation is in a very critical moment and Nigerians cannot afford a Senate that is plagued by an unstable leadership which does not command the loyalty of the lawmakers”, CPD stated.
