Godswill Akpabio, the former minister of Niger Delta affairs, will be the next president of the senate, according to outgoing Kano governor Abdullahi Ganduje.
Ganduje spoke on Thursday in Calabar, the state capital, during a meeting with his Cross River counterpart, Ben Ayade.
President Muhammadu Buhari’s chief of staff, Ibrahim Gambari, was also present at the meeting.
The governor of Kano stated that the decision to nominate Akpabio had already been made, but he did not specify whether it was an All Progressives Congress (APC) leadership decision.
He stated, “The senate president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria will come from the south-south, and it will be the former governor of Akwa Ibom.”
“The uncommon governor, the uncommon minister, who will be the uncommon senate president. We have therefore resolved the matter.
“I assure you that he will be the senate president of Nigeria; we are merely awaiting the appointed date.”
Ayade, for his part, expressed gratitude for the selection of Akpabio.
The governor said, “I want to thank you so much for zoning the senate president to the south-south and to our brother from a neighbouring state who is also a resident of Cross River state.”
“We would like to thank you for this wonderful opportunity because our dream of a seaport in Bakassi is becoming a reality.”
Akpabio and Orji Kalu, the former governor of Abia state, are among the leading southern candidates for the senate presidency.