…says, ‘I ran against Tinubu, Shettima, APC governors, not Akpabio’
Abdulaziz Yari said he was defeated by a gang up of some top government officials led by President Tinubu when he contested the senate presidency against Godswil Akpabio on Tuesday.
“I never dreamt of not winning. From the day we started taken count of those with us, we had a number that showed we were in the majority. But you should not forget that I didn’t contest against Akpabio because if I knew I would not be up against Akpabio, I would not have joined the race,” he said.
“Everyone was involved. The president was involved, the vice president was involved, the secretary government of the federation was involved, the governors all against me alone and those that supported me.
“I hope that in his second tenure, the president will allow democratic process to take centre stage in the parliament. He said he has a preferred candidate but the right thing for him as a leader was to accept everyone as his own. He shouldn’t show difference. He said during his swearing in that he would do right to all manner of people. I should be among those he was referring to but with this outcome, it shows there is betrayal and inducement whether to scare (some senators) or some other ways,” he said.
“You know National Assembly election is not the type of you’ll say there is rigging. They’re 109 senators and these are matured people in their own rights who have their own decisions and convictions. So, as a Muslim I’ve accepted the outcome of the election in good faith,” he said.
Mr Yari, who was the chairman of Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF), said he has nothing against President Tinubu because he believed it was God’s decision that he wouldn’t be the senate president.