Orji Kalu, the Senate Chip Whip in the 9th Assembly, has urged members of the All-Progressives Congress who are thinking of defecting to opposition parties to “come together and work as one Senate.”
Mr Kalu’s appeal came in reaction to reports that twenty-two lawmakers inside the party may depart as a result of the June 13 Senate election results.
The former governor of Abia denied any misconduct in the election that resulted in Sen Godswill Akpabio becoming Senate President of the 10th National Assembly.
“Let me be honest with you, the election in the Senate was very transparent. Senator Akpabio won the election. It was free. It was fair,” Mr Kalu said in a multimedia upload on Facebook.
Mr Kalu pointed out that nothing he witnessed on the morning of the election suggested that the outcome was not a real reflection of the voting process.
Sen Akpabio received 63 votes, 17 more than his opponent, Abdulaziz Yari, to win the election.
“Akpabio, to my conscience, to my seeing and to my honour, won the election and we have since congratulated him,” he continued.
Mr Kalu then advised the concerned lawmakers to abandon their issues to avoid the formation of factions inside the legislative chamber.
“There are no two Senate in the history of the Senate. There is only one Senate. On the 13th of June was the day we decided to have one Senate,” he said.
“I am using this Salah period to appeal to our people to come together and work as one Senate.”
