SHOW OF SHAME: APC SENATORS, ALASOADURA, MARAFA EXCHANGE BLOWS IN PUBLIC

Two Nigerian Senators from Ondo and Zamfara states threw caution to the winds yesterday when they traded blows to express their disagreement over positions in the National Assembly Abuja. It was at a meeting to end the crisis between the warring factions of the All Progressives Congress in the Senate on Tuesday which at the end resulted in deadlock.

According to reports some of the Senators are loyal to the President of the Senate, Bukola Saraki, others are loyal to Senator Ahmad Lawan, who was endorsed by the leadership of the APC for the Senate presidency. Several meetings have being held to resolve the face-off occasioned by the emergence of Saraki. And during one of such meetings on Tuesday, Senator Kabiru Marafa, the spokesman of Unity Forum, which is loyal to Senator Lawan, ‎attacked Senator Tayo Alasoadura, who argued that the choice of Senator Roberts Boroffice is better than Senator Sola Adeyeye for one of the Senate’s leadership positions. Marafa hit Alasoadura in the process. It took the intervention of other senators to pull the two men apart and settle the issue.

Saraki, at the plenary session had called for a meeting of APC senators to deliberate on the remaining positions in the Senate such as the Senate Leader, Deputy Senate Leader, Senate Whip and Deputy Senate Whip. But the matter took another dimension at the meeting as members ‎disagreed on the zoning arrangement placed on the table.

According to one of the lawmakers who attended the meeting, Suleiman Hunkuyi, the problem was caused by attempts by the Saraki-led group to impose its candidates on the party. Midway into the meeting, which was held behind closed doors, an angry Hunkuyi stormed out of the venue and threw the doors open, asking newsmen around to witness the drama. With the atmosphere already charged, trouble started when Alsoadura(APC-Ondo Central), a member of the Senator of Like Minds, differed on the choice of Adeyeye (APC-Osun Central) as Chief Whip.

The former Commissioner of Finance in Ondo State insisted that Borroffice, who is from Ondo State, is a better candidate than Adeyeye given his experience as a ranking senator. Infuriated by Alasoadura’s comment, Marafa took offence, launched an unexpected attack on the latter, who staggered backwards and almost fell to the ground.

However, before the meeting went violent, Saraki had pleaded with the APC senators to forget the past by rallying round his leadership of the Senate and by extension the 8th National Assembly, but all his pleas fell on deaf ears.