| Dogara |
Embattled Speaker Yakubu Dogara is in desperate search for a minimum of additional 28 members of the House to retain his leadership of the Green Chamber. Dogara who has come under intense scrutiny and pressure to quit on the strength of allegations by the sacked chairman of the House Committee on Appropriation, Abdul-mumin Jibrin, that he and four other principal officers of the House were involved in budget padding, has already secured the signatures of 262 of the 360 members.
The 262, The Nation learnt, have already signed a register opened by Dogara to keep track of those backing him in the biggest threat yet to his position since he was elected in an acrimonious process in June last year. But he needs an additional 28 signatures from the remaining 98 members to be relatively at ease.
The following is the breakdown of the 98 Reps who are yet to sign the register:
Lagos -18; Sokoto -2; Kogi -1;Bauchi -2; Oyo -6; Kaduna-3; Osun -6;Niger -3;Ondo -4;Taraba -1;Ogun -1;Katsina -3;Kebbi -1;Edo -5; Kano -4;and Benue -1.
The implication is that the Speaker has challenges in Lagos, Osun, Oyo, Ondo, Ogun. But he has gained more support from Sokoto, Plateau, Benue, Taraba, Kwara, Borno, Ekiti, the entire South-East and South-South both of which are controlled by the PDP. Dogara’s strategists are said to be shocked by the refusal of two out of the 12 Representatives from his home state of Bauchi to support him.
A source who is familiar with the unfolding event said: “About 262 Representatives have signed the register to back Dogara although the target is actually 290 members to Ward off any threat. “About 98 members have not signed, undecided or on vacation.