REVEALED: How Senators voted last Tuesday on floor of the Senate
The voting pattern of senators as they elected the Senate President during their first sitting on Tuesday has been revealed.
Former Akwa Ibom State Governor, Godswill Akpabio – who was the anointed candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) – defeated his only challenger, former Zamfara State Governor, Abdulaziz Yari to become the President of the 10th Senate.
The voting pattern which was seen by WesternPost, showed that Akpabio had 64 votes to Yari’s 45, contrary to the 63:46 widely reported in the media.
While Akpabio was the choice of the ruling APC, WesternPost can confirm that 15 senators elected on the ruling party’s platform didn’t vote for him, rather pitching their tent with Yari instead.
With Akpabio losing the support of 15 out of the 59 members of the APC, he had to make do with the votes of 20 senators from other parties – 13 Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), four Labour Party (LP), two Social Democratic Party (SDP) and one All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA).
The APC senators who failed to vote Akpabio are: Orji Uzor Kalu (Abia), Elisha Ishaku (Adamawa), Umar Baba (Bauchi), Dafinone Omueya and Joel Ewomazino (Delta) and Okpebholo Sunday (Edo).
Others are: Danjuma Goje (Gombe), Nasir Zangon (Katsina), Musa Sanni (Niger), Jimoh Ibrahim (Ondo), Ibrahim Lamido and Aliyu Wamakko (Sokoto), David Jimkatu (Taraba) and Sahabi Ya’u who joined his fellow Senator Yari from Zamfara.
The 13 PDP senators who joined the APC on voting Akpabio are his two kinsmen from Akwa Ibom, Bassey Etim and Akpan Samson, Agadaga Sunday (Bayelsa), Jarigbe Jarigbe (Cross River), Ngwu Osita (Enugu) and Jiya Ndalikali (Niger).
The PDP senators from both Osun and Rivers states, Fadeyi Olubiyi, Francis Fadahunsi and Oyewumi Olarere (Osun), Onyesoh Heacho, Mpigi Barinda and Ipalibo Banigo (Rivers) and Zamfara’s Ikra Bilbis also voted Akpabio.
The LP’s Darlington Nwokeocha (Abia), Tony Nwoye (Anambra) Bernand Imasuen (Edo) and Ireti Kingibe (FCT) voted for Akpabio. SDP’s Godiya Akwashiki and Aliyu Wadada both from Nasarawa and APGA’s Eyinnaya Abaribe (Abia) competed the number.
