As the 10th National Assembly’s inauguration on June 13 approaches, Chief Edwin Clark, an elder statesman and former Federal Commissioner for Information, has urged the senators-elect to rally behind a Christian candidate from the southern region for the position of Senate presidency.
This plea was expressed in an open letter addressed to the 109 senators-elect on Friday.
Chief Edwin Clark, a prominent figure within the Ijaw community, emphasized the importance of reconstructing the broken bridges of unity, which he believes were severely damaged during the eight-year tenure of former President Muhammadu Buhari.
Clark stated, “The tension over who occupies what position in the 10th Senate is overheating our polity and hurting the fragile peace and unity we are currently having in our beloved country.
“It is time to heal our land, and in so doing, what I expect of the 10th Senate is to give the position of Senate President to a Christian senator from the southern part of the country. It is only fair, equitable and just to do so.
“We have Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Senator Kashim Shettima as President and Vice President respectively. Both of them are Muslims. The Chief Justice of Nigeria, Olukayode Ariwoola, is a Muslim.
“Making a Muslim the Senate President will be unacceptable to any discerning mind that thinks well of this country, as it will mean that the three arms of government are all headed by Muslims. It is also to be noted that the person tipped to be the Speaker of the House of Representatives, is equally a Muslim.”
Furthermore, Clark criticized Nasir El-Rufai, the former governor of Kaduna State, for his statement regarding the Muslim-Muslim ticket of the All Progressives Congress. El-Rufai had suggested that this arrangement was a deliberate strategy to establish Islamic dominance in Nigeria for the next two decades.
Clark described as “insensitive, irresponsible, uncouth and arrogant statement credited to Nasir El-Rufai, on his plan to impose the Islamic religion on the country, lasting for the next 20 years.”
He added, “It is a shame and embarrassment that El-Rufai who has been in government since 1999 and has served with former President Olusegun Obasanjo government should commit such a seditious act that could incite violence and tear the country apart.
“What else is a treasonable felony? What is the difference between the action of El-Rufai, and the offence that Nnamdi Kalu (leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra) is accused of?”
