More Senators Deserting Akpabio’s Camp for Yari’s, Says Group

*EFCC presents overwhelming evidence to Tinubu Wale Igbintade

The National Coordinator of Think Nigeria Initiative, Mr. Omogbolahan L. Babawale, has disclosed that a majority of the senators-elect had begun to desert Senator Godswill Akpabio and shifting their support to the former governor of Zamfara State, Senator Abdul-Aziz Yari.
Reacting to a statement credited to the Director General of Akpabio campaign group, Senator Ali Ndume, that Yari’s only claim to the Senate presidency was money, Babawale said there was palpable panic mood in Akpabio’s camp.

The group also noted that, a senator in Akpabio’s camp had stated that no one in Nigeria had more money to spend in politics than the former governor of Akwa Ibom State.
But, speaking in Abuja yesterday, Babawale explained that the “careless outburst has further brightened the chances of Yari to clinch the presidency of the Senate.”

According to him, “Ndume might have read the handwriting on the wall, that majority of the senators are deserting Akpabio and shifting their support to our good-natured candidate, Yari, and is therefore in a panic mood, which brought about that preposterous statement.”
There were strong indications that the Presidency had been influenced by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), to withdraw its approval from Akpabio’s aspiration.

“So far, the camp of a former Governor of Akwa Ibom State, Senator Godswill Akpabio is in a panic mood as the President, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, is withdrawing his support for him following overwhelming evidence from the EFCC.
“He is said to have multiple questions to answer before the EFCC agency and fears that such a personality would be more of a liability than an asset to the Tinubu presidency.

“Chairman of EFCC, Mr. Abdulrasheed Bawa, had reportedly compounded the woes of Akpabio,” Babawale added, adding that the EFCC chair had opened a can of worms on the series of financial crimes allegations being investigated and which necessitated the commission to invite Akpabio twice, but on both occasions, he failed to honour the invitations.
Competent security sources that the EFCC Chairman was upbeat on Akpabio’s criminal cases, when he discussed them with his crack team in their office.
The source, who declined to give details of the directives given to the crack team on the matter, hinted that Akpabio might again be invited to the EFCC again.

“The EFCC boss was in the villa, ostensibly to brief the president on the rumpus between the commission and the DSS, which led to the storming of the Ikoyi EFCC office, where he also briefed the president on Akpabio and his inordinate ambition to lead the Senate. But Akpabio is no respecter of institutions. He showed the same disdain to the Senate many times, when it invited him to discuss certain urgent issues rearing their ugly heads at the NDDC where he was minister but he shunned the senate,” the source said.