Nigerian President-Elect Tinubu to Form Diverse Gov't of National Unity, Local Media Reports

Last month, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, the governing All Progressives Congress (APC) party's candidate won Nigeria's presidential elections, scoring over 8.7 million votes. While he is assuming the presidency of the country, one of the main issues for him is choosing the speaker of the 10th National Assembly of Nigeria.

The newly elected president of Nigeria, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, vowed to put together a government of national unity, local media has reported.

The incoming president has promised to form a government which will represent the interests of each region of the country, even if the majority of any one of them voted against Tinubu, local media says, citing sources.

Along with that, the new cabinet of Tinubu is said to be free of ethnic discrimination or political skewering.

Tinubu is reportedly going to choose the president of the Senate at the incoming 10th National Assembly, the country's parliament, which is to replace Buhari's ninth National Assembly, from the South East, in order to appease the people of Nigeria and assuage any feelings of real or perceived disparity among the country's people, according to the media.

The president-elect's preferential candidate might be the chief whip and returning senator Orji Uzor Kalu, who is said to be a close ally of Tinubu.

As for the speaker of the House of Representatives, there are five lawmakers who have set their sights on this position, the media says, including:

There is also information, provided by the media, about other offices in the Nigerian government.

The position of Chief of Staff in Tinubu's 10th House of Representatives is most likely to be changed by the incumbent speaker of the ninth House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila representing the Surulere 1 Federal Constituency of Lagos State.

Similarly, according to the report, Kaduna State Governor Nasir el-Rufai is being considered for the office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation; the seat which is being weighed with Kano State Governor Umar Ganduje.

As the media reports, all issues concerning offices in the new government are going to be discussed during a meeting with the National Assembly members-elect at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, scheduled for March 13.

Meanwhile, at a March 12 briefing in Abuja, the Network of Tinubu Support Groups in Nigeria urged the leadership of the APC to back Muktar Aliyu Betara for the position of speaker of the 10th National Assembly.

President of the group, Moses Ikani, said Betara had successfully dealt with all the tasks within the National Assembly since 2007.

"Amid this seeming hopelessness in our polity, we found a highly resourceful parliamentarian in the Green Chamber of the National Assembly who is familiar with the challenges inherent in leadership at the Nigerian legislative arm of government. He is Muktar Aliyu Betara, the member representing Biu/Bayo/Shwa and Kwaya Kusar Federal constituency in Borno State," he said.

As the president of the group assessed, Betara "had been rated as one of the most successful members of the ninth Assembly in terms of parliamentary activities," and his success had resonated "with his immediate federal constituency, where his effective representation at the Green Chamber of the National Assembly was felt directly."

However, there are voices calling for zoning the position of the speaker in the House of Representatives to the North Central part of Nigeria.

For instance, Cham Faliya Sharon, a social commentator and ally of the Deputy Speaker of House of Representatives, Idris Wase, appealed on March 12 to APC to zone the speakership to North Central.

He recalled the achievements of the party's activities, particularly in the provision of infrastructure and growth of local productivity, saying they are the result of "the progressive collaboration and support given the Executive branch by the leadership and members of the National Assembly who are themajority of the APC."

"Zoning the office of the speaker to the North Central region and supporting Ahmed Idris Wase to occupy the office should be considered an exercise of recognition and reward for loyalty and sacrifice," Sharon said.

Cham Sharon described him as a perfect example of what loyalty and respect for the APC ought to be.

Earlier, Nigeria saw presidential elections which were won by the ruling APC party's candidate Bola Tinubu supported by the outgoing President Muhammadu Buhari.

However, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) of Nigeria, with its presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar, the former vice president, said it did not recognize the results of the elections and demanded that they be canceled.

The party "demands that INEC [Independent National Electoral Commission] immediately withdraws the Certificate of Return issued to the Presidential Candidate of the APC and cancel the Presidential election declaration in line with its powers," it said in a statement on its social media webpage.

The PDP accused the INEC of deviating from the constitution, the Electoral Act 2022, and the INEC Guidelines and Regulations for the conduct of the 2023 presidential elections.

The PDP's candidate Abubakar received over 6.9 million votes, while Tinubu had more than 8.7 million votes.