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Powershift, oil law dominate senators’ retreat
A three-day meeting of Northern Senators ended in Sokoto last
weekend with a call by the lawmakers for the presidency to return to the region
in 2007. Deputy Political Editor, Ndidi Okafor, who attended the retreat,
examines the issues at the forum.
THE
usual intrigues and nocturnal meetings featured prominently at the three-day
retreat of the 58 senators of northern extraction held in Sokoto.
The retreat which had as its theme:
"Assailing the current challenges facing the North" was hosted by Governor
Attahiru Dalhatu Bafarawa under the chairmanship of Senator Idris Ibrahim Kuta.
Serving and former senators from the North
were also present at the retreat which featured late night meetings, lobbying
and political realignment.
The main issue that dominated the retreat
was the agitation for the presidency to return to the North in 2007.
Clearly, two political camps emerged at
the retreat, namely, senators who are loyal to the Vice President Atiku Abubakar
and those in support of speculated ambition of former military president, Gen
Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida.
The Northern senators, former minister and
governors were either routing for Atiku Abubakar or backing Gen. Babangida at
the retreat.
Norturnal meetings to decide whether power
should shift to the North East or North West geo-political zones where Atiku and
Babangida hail from respectively was inconclusive.
Thus, when the retreat ended, the
resolution simply called for power shift "to the North" with a warning to the
South to wait for its turn.
The 10-point communiqu� read by the
chairman of Northern Senators Forum (NSF), Senator Kuta, said the NSF "stands by
the rotation of power between the North and the south". It was gathered that at
the retreat attended by the duo of Atiku and Babangida, that moves to reach a
consensus on which zone of the North should produce the president in 2007, if it
is eventually endorsed by the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), left the
senators sharply divided. The move, it was learnt "remained a dynamite that we
did not allow to explode", one of the senators who spoke under anonymity told
Daily Champion.
But the retreat was well attended with 41
serving senators and 22 former senators from the North present.
Former military rulers, Generals Babangida
and Abdulsalami Abubakar were also in attendance, Vice President Atiku Abubakar
was represented by Alhaji Lawal Kaita and pledged his commitment and support for
Northern unity which he said was centered on political, educational and economic
advancement of the North.
Former civilian president, Alhaji Shehu
Shagari agreed with the clarion call on Northern political leaders to unite and
sink their differences.
The chairman of Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF),
Chief Sunday Awoniyi and the 19 Northern governors led by Governor Saminu Turaki
of Jigawa State chided the senators for allowing the passage of the Abolition of
offshore/onshore Dichotomy law despite their numerical strength in the senate.
According to Awoniyi, the law "is
injurious" to the interest of the North and its passage was "a big mistake. We
have made a mistake and we must correct it."
Justifying the suit of the 19 governors
against the voiding of the oil Dichotomy law, Governor Turaki blamed the
senators for allowing the bill to sail through the senate.
He contended that the governors had to
take the only democratic option left "which is giving to court to challenge the
law."
For Gen Babangida who also spoke on behalf
of Gen Abubakar, unity and genuine reconciliation were necessary ingredients
needed by the Northern zone to succeed even as Governor Bafarawa carpeted
politicians elected officials from the north for the backwardness in the zone.
But shortly after addressing the audience,
Governor Bafarawa, Babangida and other politicians moved to Sokoto State
Government House for another close, door meeting.
But there was no conclusion at the end of
the retreat as to which zone of the North should take the presidential slot
expected by the Northern politicians.
This division it was learnt explained why
some of the governors stopped senators from their states from attending the
retreat. Senator Kuta had in his opening remarks to the gallery lambasted the
governors whom he said "worked against this retreat but the jinx has been
broken. We did not disturb them when they held their governors’ meeting,"
But Governor Turaki had quickly responded
and said the governors were not against the NSF and explained that his speech
was "drafted by the governors".
Besides, the NSF held a close door meeting
with the managing director of the Bank of the North with Senator Lawal Shuabu
later declaring in plenary that the increase in capital base is targeted at the
north."
Senator Shuabu (Zamfara) insisted that the
N25 billion new capital base prescribed by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) was
meant to cripple the "economy of the North and we will not allow it." He said
that categorization of banks as enunciated in the Banks and other financial
institutions Amendment bill before the senate will be sustained by the Northern
senators.
For Senator Badamosi Maccido (Sokoto), the
focus will be to push for the review of the Dichotomy law in the senate when it
resumes.
Indeed, decisions relating to the
protection of Northern interest at the centre were reached at the end of the
three-day retreat which began on Friday, September 10, 2004.
However, the most prominent among the
Northern interest remained the 2007 presidency which divided the politicians.
Another meeting of NSF has been fixed for
Bauchi in March 2005 to re-open debate on the vexed political issue.
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