Former Governor of Akwa Ibom state, Godswill Akpabio, has been elected as the Senate President of the 10th Assembly.
Akpabio, the preferred candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), was paired with Senator Jibrin Barau, representing Kano South.
During the voting process, Akpabio garnered 63 votes while his opponent was left with 46 votes, leding to his declaration by the clerk as president of the senate, after a quick recess. Meanwhile, former Governor of Zamfara, Abdulaziz Yari will be running as the Chief Whip of the ninth Senate and Orji Kalu as the Deputy.
The election which started earlier than scheduled was presided over by Sani Tambuwal, the Clerk of the National Assembly. The clerk called for nominations, and Senator-elect for Borno South, Ali Ndume, nominated Akpabio as the President of the Senate.
Akpabio accepted the nomination, and Elisha Abbo, senator-elect for Adamawa North, nominated Abdulaziz Yari, senator-elect for Zamfara West. However, with more votes, Akpabio emerged as the winner.
“I want to commend my colleagues for finding me worthy to lead this 10th Assembly as the Senate President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria,” Akpabio said in response to his victory.
