Revealed: PDP May File Ekweremadu as Saraki's Replacement

BARELY twenty four hours after the national
chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress
(APC), Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, openly
declared that the party will not mind if a member
of another political party takes over from Senate
president, Dr. Bukola Saraki, if he leaves office
based on the asset declaration trial, there are
indications that the Peoples Democratic Party
(PDP) may field Deputy Senate President,
Senator Ike Ekweremadu as a likely replacement
if there is vacancy.
Source gathered that some members of the
opposition party are thinking in that direction
following the body language of the Unity Forum
and the Like Minds camps in the Senate.
Members of both camps, who spoke with our
correspondent yesterday evening, revealed that
they are considering Ekweremadu as a possible
replacement for the Senate president, based on
his experience and the fact that he has been
Saraki’s deputy since last June.
A senator from the South-East who is a member
of the kitchen cabinet of the Senate president,
told our correspondent that members of Like
Minds group, who are predominantly PDP, were
already mooting the idea of Ekweremadu
succeeding Saraki.
He said since it was becoming glaring that Saraki
was losing support, both from the party and the
Senate, it was time to shop for a senator who
will carry everyone along as his possible
replacement.
He said though the idea of Ekweremadu
succeeding Saraki has not formally been
discussed in their regular meetings held at the
Maitama residence of Saraki, lawmakers were
already throwing their weight behind the Deputy
Senate President.
The source said: “We hold meetings everyday
and we strategize on the way forward. But many
of us were shocked when we read yesterday
(Saturday) that the APC was willing to concede
the Senate presidency seat to us (PDP). We did
not expect it to end like this.
“We have always stood by Saraki and we will
stand by him till the end. But we also need to
start putting the interest of our party (PDP) first.
We have started talking to ourselves and we
have started mounting pressure on Ekweremadu
to gear up and be prepared to succeed Saraki.
He has been the Deputy Senate President for
three times now. PDP will take over and
Ekweremadu may just be the man.”
In a dramatic twist, the Unity Forum has
promised to work with Ekweremadu in the event
that he emerges as Senate President.
A prominent figure of the forum from the North-
West who had a telephone chat with our
correspondent yesterday, aligned with the
position of the APC national chairman.
He said the forum was ready to work with
Ekweremadu if he emerges as Senate President.
He argued that it was safer to have an
opposition member as Senate President than
Saraki, who he said has repeatedly defied the
party, APC.
He said: “If Ekweremadu emerges through a
democratic means, we will support him. We
cannot have our own who is fighting us. We will
rather support a stranger that we know than
someone who is fighting us from within. We will
soon meet and take a position on the next line of
action.”
Saraki’s trial is expected to continue today at the
Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT), having failed to
get a fresh reprieve from the Federal High Court
in Abuja which ruled last Friday that the Senate
President should face trial.