Lawmakers’ Absence Was To Respect Party And Buhari’s Call – SSA

The Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu says that the 51 lawmakers of the All Progressives Congress (APC) that were absent during the election of the Senate President chose to respect the call of the party and the President.

It was recalled that President Muhammadu Buhari had on Tuesday called for a 9.00am peace meeting to resolve the in-house crisis and address APC House members-elect and Senators-elect.

Mr. Shehu explained that President Buhari was on his way to the meeting when he was notified that there was an election taking place already, he noted that the key candidates were also notified including the Clerk of the National Assembly, they were all informed of the meeting with the President and the party members.

Speaking on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily, Mr. Shehu said that the party had started a process of choosing the leaders from the previous night and the process was already complete.

Shehu also said that the reason why the meeting was held on Tuesday morning was because President Buhari had been out of the country attending the G7 event, and “could not be present in two places at the same time”.

He also explained that the President’s congratulatory message to the new Senate President and House of Rep. Speaker is a way of not interfering in the affairs of the National Assembly.