Quote:Shola Oyeyipo in Abuja



An aspirant to the office of the President of the Senate in the 9th Assembly has promised each of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) senators-elect N100 million worth constituency projects to be sited his constituency,

Sources close to some newly elected legislators disclosed the plan yesterday, noting that theconstituency projects “are among some of the mouth watering inducements offered to the affected Senators-elect ahead of the inauguration of the 9 th Assembly.”

A PDP senator-elect confided in a ranking senator that he was invited to submit his own constituency project worth N200 million in spite ofthe fact that he was yet to be sworn-in.

However, findings showed that not all the senators-elect benefitted from the gesture as one All Progressive Congress(APC) senator disclosed that he was not approached to submit any constituency project.

According to the source, I am aware that some of my colleagues have been accorded this gesture but so far none of us in the APC has been approached.

Asked why, he said it may not unconnected with their decision to solidly support Ahmed Lawan , the APC endorsed candidate to the office of President of the Senate.

“We are going to give our leader block votes because he is the choice of the Party. We are toing the party line this time around’,he affirmed.

Another PDP Senator-elect revealed that he would not be swayed by such a gesture knowing that he will merely waste his vote and create bad blood in the process since the APC which has a greater number of Senators has settled on Ahmed Lawan.

“I will not be swayed by this strategy. I want my vote to count. The APC is the party with the majority. As such I won’t waste my vote and create rancor in the process. I hope the 9 th assembly will have a harmonious relationship with the executive arm.”

Intense lobby and horse trading have heightened as the count down to the election of leaders of the National Assembly on June 11 continues.