By George Mgbeleke <\/p>\n
President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio on Tursday pacified Senators who failed to secure their political parties \u2018 tickets in the recently concluded primary elections across the country, raising the hope of helping some of them to secure their parties\u2019 tickets and return to the senate.<\/p>\n
Akpabio gave the hint while welcoming senators back from their three week holiday to enable them participate in their respective party primaries.<\/p>\n
While the President of the Senate and a few others in the leadership won their tickets unopposed; there has been a few upsets; leaving at least 40 senators unable to secure their tickets.<\/p>\n
In all, only 60 serving senators were successful at the primaries conducted across party lines.<\/p>\n
Akpabio congratulates the winners and their political parties even as he admonished those who failed to secure their tickets to take solace in the overall victory that democracy stands for in Nigeria.<\/p>\n
\u201cI know that there will always be victories and disappointments, yet above every individual triumph stands a greater triumph, the triumph of democracy itself\u201d.<\/p>\n
To further pacify the 40 who lost their tickets; Akpabio told senators that the Senate leadership was assured that there will not be as much casualties in the primaries as it has now been recorded.<\/p>\n
He told them that the Senate Leader, OPEYEMI BAMIDELE is working to reduce the level of casualties and ensure that some of them secure their parties\u2019 tickets.<\/p>\n
“As we return to our constitutional responsibilities, I pray that Almighty God grants us wisdom and good health for the task ahead. For we are not merely representatives of constituencies, but custodians of the hopes and aspirations of Nigerians who look to this Senate for the realization of a greater nation.<\/p>\n
“I congratulate political parties that recently concluded their primaries and internal democratic processes. I felicitate those who have secured the mandate of their parties to seek elective office. I know that there will always be victories and disappointments. Yet above every individual triumph stands the greater triumph\u2014the triumph of democracy itself,” he said. <\/p>\n
Friends and colleagues, We resume our work under the mournful shadow of a tragedy that has shaken our nation. The abduction of schoolchildren and teachers in Oyo State is not merely an attack on innocent citizens; it is an assault on our collective humanity.<\/p>\n
Continuing he said, “We mourn because if we cannot protect our children we imperil our future. We mourn because a nation that cannot guarantee the safety of its teachers weakens the very foundations upon which education rests. And we mourn because, for as long as those children remain in captivity, our nation remains captive with them.<\/p>\n
“Today, we grieve the loss of two dedicated educators: Mr. Michael Oyedokun, who died in captivity, and Mr. Adesiyan Adegboye, who lost his life during the attack. We also mourn the child whose life was cut short before its promise could be fulfilled. We share the pain of the bereaved families.<\/p>\n
“Their loss is our loss. Their sorrow is our sorrow. Their pain is our pain. Yet even in the midst of grief, we remain hopeful that, through the determined efforts of the government and our security agencies, those still in captivity will be safely rescued and reunited with their loved ones.<\/p>\n
“On behalf of the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, I extend our deepest condolences to the bereaved families, the affected school community, and the Government and people of Oyo State.<\/p>\n
“May I now respectfully request that we rise and observe one minute of silence in honour of the departed.
\nONE MINUTE SILENCE (May Almighty God grant them eternal rest and comfort all who mourn.)<\/p>\n
“Distinguished Colleagues, At moments such as these, there is a temptation to divide, to accuse, and to seek advantage from tragedy. Politicians and aspirants must resist that temptation for such cheap publicity. Those who kidnap our children, terrorize our communities, and murder innocent citizens do not distinguish between party, faith, or ethnicity. Their assault is directed against Nigeria itself. Therefore, our response must be equal to the challenge. We must stand united, firm, and resolute.<\/p>\n
“Let us continue to support every lawful and necessary measure to strengthen security, protect our schools, safeguard our communities, and ensure that every bandit faces the full weight of justice.<\/p>\n
“The challenge before us is real. But so too is the courage of our people, the resilience of our institutions, and the enduring promise of Nigeria. Let us therefore approach the days ahead with collective resolve. Let us differ honestly, but remain united in our devotion to Nigeria.<\/p>\n
“Let us continue to conduct ourselves with dignity so that future generations will say that when Nigeria faced difficulty, this Senate did not falter; when leadership was required, this Senate did not shrink; and when duty called, this Senate answered.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
By George Mgbeleke President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio on Tursday pacified Senators who failed to secure their political parties \u2018 tickets in the recently concluded primary elections across the country, raising the hope of helping some of them to secure their parties\u2019 tickets and return to the senate. Akpabio gave the hint while welcoming […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":9879,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-14235","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-politics"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14235","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14235"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14235\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":14236,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14235\/revisions\/14236"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9879"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14235"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14235"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14235"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}