The governor of Sokoto state, and former Speaker, House of Representatives, Hon Aminu Tambuwal, has revealed that he supported Hon. Yakubu Dogara for the position of Speaker instead od Femi Gbajabiamila, who was the adopted candidate of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
Gov. Tambuwal said, ”I have strong affinity with Hon Femi. He was closer to me than Dogara. But when talking about leadership and collective decisions, sentiments have to be put aside”
“I’m not here to tell you that my support made Dogara the Speaker, no. Two things made Dogara to become the Speaker, one is God and two, Dogara’s competence. Eight out of ten members of the Body of Principal Officers in the last Assembly supported Dogara’s aspiration. Only Hon Femi (Gbajabiamila) and Hon Datti Ahmad supported Femi”.
“The acknowledgement of Dogara’s competence did not start with me. It started from the time of Hon Patricia and Etteh and Hon Dimeji Bankole when they entrusted him with a sensitive position of the Chairman of House Services Committee. The committee is one of the most sensitive in the legislature. Apart from taking care of the welfare of members, the committee oversees all procurement processes. As the Speaker, I only did what my predecessors did by giving Dogara this sensitive position.
“No person, as far as I know, has ever served as chairman of the House Services committee in two dispensations. Dogara broke that jinx. All through my tenure, I brought Dogara close to me because I have found in him a person who is competent, accommodating, and with capacity to lead.
“Anyone doubting Dogara’s ability to lead, should ask members of the 7th Assembly how he handled their matter. So we supported Dogara not for any reason but because he was competent to deliver on any task given to him”, Tambuwal added.