A group, the Niger Delta Rights Advocates (NDRA), has called on members-elect of the House of Representatives from various political parties, to vote for the spokesman of the House, Hon. Benjamin Kalu as the next Speaker.
Kalu, a member of the All Progressives Congress (APC) is the member representing Bende Federal Constituency of Abia State.
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Addressing journalists in Port Harcourt yesterday, NDRA national coordinator, Hon. Bright Ngolo, said politically speaking, no candidate vying on the platform of the ruling APC can win the Speakership position through through the votes of APC members-elect alone.
Ngolo said: “In recent days, we have read of very pedestrian and jaundiced reasons why positions should be zoned or allocated to certain individuals which we find very ridiculous and insulting to our collective sensibilities as Nigerians.
“We have also read personal attacks, rendition of ethnic jingoism, unnecessary sense of entitlements, attempts at projecting strongmen rather than institutions etc etc.
“All these points to one thing – the lack of democratic credentials by all those who seek to market and introduce obviously unqualified candidates to the Nigerian people as Speaker of the Federal House of Representatives.
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“The NDRA is minded therefore to throw our weight behind someone who brings what we call generational balance in the current leadership equation of the country and also an intellectually brilliant fellow – Hon Benjamin Kalu, the member representing Bende Federal Constituency and current Spokesperson of the House of Representatives; a 2nd term member of the Green Chamber.
“He is sole survivor in the APC of the electoral dynamics that swept away many strong and mighty including the sitting Governor of Abia state in the February 25th 2023 elections.
“That this man survived the popular test of his people who returned him through the ballot as the only member of the House of Representatives on the APC ticket from Abia State.
“Gentlemen, politically speaking, no candidate vying on the platform of the ruling APC can win the Speakership position through through the votes of APC Rep members alone.
“Since voting would be across party lines and members of the APC, PDP, NNPP, LP, ADC, APGA and SDP will all vote to decide who gets the job, it therefore requires that a candidate with multi-party acceptability be put forward and Representative Benjamin Kalu fits the bill.”
