Buhari Meets Dogara Again, Caucus Tonight As President Bids To End APC NASS Crisis

BEVERLY HILLS, July 01, (THEWILL) – President Muhammadu Buhari will tonight formally meet with the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Yakubu Dogara, and members of his caucus at the House as the President moves to resolve the crisis rocking the All Progressives Congress (APC) at the National Assembly.

The meeting has been scheduled for 10.pm inside the Presidential Villa, the President's Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Mallam Garba Shehu, confirmed to state house correspondents.

Wednesday's scheduled meeting will be the first open meeting between Buhari, Dogara and his caucus since he was elected Speaker ahead of his party's nominee for the post, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila.

THEWILL gathered authoritatively that Buhari had first met with Dogara privately on Monday to workout modalities for Wednesday night's meeting. A source with knowledge of the meeting confirmed that the two men discussed extensively on ways to end the conflict in the House.

It was gathered that those who attended the meeting included Dogara’s ace challenger, who lost his bid to the incumbent, Hon Femi Gbajabiamila, Hon Alhassan Ado Doguwa and Hon Mohammed Tahir Monguno.

All the three, together with Hon Pally Iriase, were on the list that the party sent to Dogara for appointment as Principal Officers of the 8th Assembly. But Dogara set aside the APC’s endorsement on the pretext that the North Central caucus is in court challenging the party's decision on the matter.

 According to the speaker, “even before   I saw the letter, there was a court process served to leadership of the House. What they are alleging is very simple: whether it is in accordance with the constitution of Nigeria and the House rules that a political party has the right to chose the principal officers of the House.

“The second question is: assuming the political party has the right, whether it is in tandem with the constitution to exclude their zone, (North Central), and  whether that meets the requirement of the provision of the federal character.”

But the current Standing Rules of ‎ the House stipulates in Sections 27, 28, 29 and 30 that the Majority Leader, Chief Whip and their Deputies shall be “nominated from among the members in the majority party in the House.”

Similarly, section 31 of the Rules provides that: “members of the Minority Parties in the House shall nominate from among them, the Minority Leader, Minority Whip, Deputy Minority Leader and Deputy Minority Whip.”  ‎

Pandemonium broke out June 25 when it became apparent that Dogara wasn’t going to read the party's letter nominating its choice of principal officers. He had received the letter since June 23.

His foot dragging on the matter erupted the more than one hour, twenty minutes fracas that balkanised the lower chamber into those supporting him and his antagonists.

The recent round of meetings with the President may not be unconnected with this development.

THEWILL could not immediately confirm whether the President would meet with Senate President, Senator Bukola Saraki, who emerged under very contentious circumstances, also ahead of the party's nominee for the post, Senator Ahmed Lawan.

Written by Muhammad Bello.