By EMMANUEL AZIKEN, Political Editor & BEN AGANDE
ABUJA— GOVERNOR Danjuma Goje is to contest against Senate President, Senator David Mark, for the leadership of the next Senate it emerged, yesterday.

His declaration derailed optimism in many quarters of a unanimous acclamation of the incumbent to continue in office at the inauguration of the seventh Senate next month.

Following the development, the influential Northern Senators’ Forum, NSF, after a meeting, yesterday evening, aborted its planned endorsement of Mark promising to consult with other aspirants from the region before issuing an endorsement next week.

Goje who is concluding a second term in office as Governor of Gombe State was elected on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, to represent Gombe Central during last month’s National Assembly elections.

Goje’s declaration was despite the nearly universal approval of Mark by many senators-elect and political stakeholders for the sustenance of the present presiding officers, Mark and his deputy, Senator Ike Ekweremadu who are about to become the first set of Senate presiding officers to conclude a four year term without a major rumpus.

An associate of the governor quoted him as saying: “I am going to contest for the election irrespective of whatever amendments to the rule as Senate rules are not superior to the constitution.”

Vanguard learnt that Goje based his bid on the fact that Senator George Akume, as a first term senator was allowed to contest during the 2007 Senate leadership contest. Akume contested against Mark in that contest and lost, and Akume, ironically is one of the few senators now propping Goje into a contest.

Mark vs Goje

The Senate had earlier this week strengthened its standing rules to remove ambiguity on the issue of ranking in the election of its presiding officers. At the meeting of the NSF in Abuja yesterday, Northern senators admitted that there was a division in its ranks and resolved to meet with other aspirants towards a uniform position that would allow a unanimous endorsement of Mark.

Senator Smart Adeyemi, vice-chairman of the NSF who briefed the press at the end of yesterday evening’s meeting said the forum would formally state its position on the leadership contest next Tuesday. While admitting that a majority of senators were presently behind Mark, he stressed the need to get more senators behind the Mark campaign in order not to ensure a division of the Northern vote during the contest.

Harnessing northern positions

Adeyemi said:  “Our coming to address the press conference is just to be able to harness all the positions of the North together. You are aware that the North West came and the North East, it is just for us to speak as a body. By Tuesday the Northern Senators will address the nation on this issue and we are not in doubt that we are going to vote in one way, but we are going to make our position known on Tuesday.

“Why we are not talking now on the issue of the Senate president is that in the course of this meeting we felt that there is need for us to discuss some issues with those who are nursing their ambition of contesting for the office.

“We would not know how many senators that are nursing the ambition, but we know we have the Senate president who is contesting, we have seen him and had some exchange of views with him. I have made my position known and as at the last count, 77 senators have endorsed the Senate president, David Mark, maybe on Tuesday we will be able to add more.

“Some other people or interest groups within the Senate who are not with him yet we have been holding discussion with them, we want to see a situation whereby 95 per cent of the senators will agree with the Senate president, David Mark.

“We are not unmindful of the fact that some people  are equally holding meetings. Between now and Tuesday we would have straightened out all the few areas so that we can have 100 per cent support. It is not that one is doubting the support for the Senate President.  We want to have a 100 per cent if possible. The agenda of the Northern Senators is to ensure that we carry everybody along in whatever position we are going to eventually announced.”

An associate of Mark welcomed the challenge from Goje last night promising that Goje would be roundly beaten. The associate said: “Let him come, he can only get one vote.”

Senator Ahmad Lawan, ANPP, Yobe North and Rep. Abdul Ningi who are both senators-elect from the Northeast and have been champions of the Mark campaign were, however, unwavering in their support for Mark last night despite Goje’s entry into the leadership contest.

Lawan told Vanguard last night: “Mark has done well in the past four years in bringing stability to the institution of the Senate that I cannot look elsewhere.”