Forgotten Dairies
Akpabio, Umeh, Abaribe Progressive Front -By IfeanyiChukwu Afuba
It’s noteworthy that Akpabio expressed solidarity with the cause of equity and fairness spearheaded by Umeh and Abaribe. His identification with, and indeed, encouragement of the principle of inclusion is heart glowing. The disposition towards a progressive agenda raises hope of better legislative climate. Is this optimism realistic? Some analysts would say no, given the extensive reach of the political elite’s irresponsibility. Others may cite the few months left in the legislative calendar too short to effect positive change.
A man stung silly by bees flees at the sight of a humming fly. This Igbo proverb helps in the understanding of our crisis of governance. Nigerians have had a raw deal from our governments since independence. Consequently, there’s a tendency by citizens to be dismissive of all those in government. As the cynics said of Nazareth in the Bible, so it’s also asked, can anything good come from Nigeria’s political leaders? The most charitable view approximates _Tell_ magazine’s 1991 description of Ibrahim Babangida’s ministers as “tourists in government.” And the cynical outrightly labels those in power as thieves. But for the discerning, matters are not always cut out in black and white. There are exceptions; there are shifts; there are altering dynamics. And individuals too experience attitudinal changes.
In the present 10th National Assembly, it’s not all lamentations on the performance of senators. No doubt, there’s the widespread impression that the Senate leadership is not detached from the Presidency. Critics cite the high rate of foreign loans as well as their ease of approvals by the Senate as a cause for concern. The pattern of submission to the executive is also seen in the controversial Rivers State emergency instrument of 2024. Mercifully, the ensuing Supreme Court judgement did not endorse the elastic interpretation of state of emergency as power to remove an elected Governor. Yet, it’s to be borne in mind that the workings of government require a degree of cooperation between the three arms especially the executive and the legislature. This demand is even more so in a polity such as ours still grappling with nationhood challenges.
There’s a sense, then, in which the Senate leadership’s apparent inferiority to the executive is in fact, a mettle of strength. Seen from another perspective, what critics perceive as a weak Senate, may well be the avoidance of confrontational politics. By steering the upper chamber towards good working relationship with the executive, Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, obviously voted for partnership rather than competition. Cordial relations with the executive branch should be seen as a win for governance. That the policy is well received is reflected in the stability in the Senate. And while it may not be too obvious, it seems logical to find this accord internally working in the Senate.
A demonstration of this engagement is seen in Akpabio’s initiative of dropping the counter lawsuits against Senator Natasha – Akpoti, over the harassment case between them, earlier in January this year. Akpabio’s gesture takes on greater significance by his not backtracking in the face of non reciprocation from the other side.
Months back, in October 2025, Senators Victor Umeh and Enyinnaya Abaribe, had at a Senate plenary objected to the omission of a nominee from the southeast in the board of the National Communication Commission (NCC). There was nothing new or surprising about the intervention of the duo. For reasons that are not very clear, Igbo or southeast marginalisation has become a recurring decimal of Nigeria’s government and politics. Anytime a section of the country is found to have been cheated in the sharing of national resources, it’s almost always the southeast. Whether it’s in regional allocation of states and local governments; headship of the armed forces and paramilitary organisations; number of ministers and manning of super ministries; siting of military – industrial complexes or strategic infrastructure such as gas pipeline or standard gauge rail, the southeast is regularly the underrepresented and most denied! It’s a sorry picture dating back to Yakubu Gowon’s state creation of 1967 which launched the plot of reducing the Igbo to minority status. But as the unwritten policy persists, Senators Umeh and Abaribe have proved foremost actors in efforts to right the wrong. Their protest on the NCC board was predictable, following a pattern of advocacy for fairness.
In March 2021, Abaribe had sponsored the Armed Forces Commission bill in the 9th Senate. The proposed legislation sought to establish the machinery for reflecting federal character in the appointment of service chiefs and other top military positions. What would have been a game changer in the sectional domination of the military was aborted by ethnic hegemonists in the Senate at the time. In his very first outing in the Senate, in 2018, Umeh secured wide support for a motion
for the inclusion of the eastern rail line in the railway modernisation programme of the federal government. Again, on November 23, 2023, Umeh brought another motion that the Eastern Rail Line be built with standard gauge tracks. It was also passed by the Senate. The two Senators are known to have spared no opportunity to engage with the authorities for solution to the Nnamdi Kanu matter. In the latest of such interventions, Umeh, using his leverage as Vice Chairman, Committee on Land, Housing & Urban Development, this September 2026, waded into the ownership conflict between the Federal Housing Authority, developers and land owners in the Abule Ado areas of Festac, Lagos, in search of solutions.
It was therefore little surprise that the two Senators in their familiar activism of public and constituency defenders rose as one to scrutinise the initial composition of the NCC board. Their interrogation subsequently led to the inclusion of Engr Ikechukwu Ugwuegede as the southeast representative. But what probably stood out more was the presiding officer’s complementary role.
Senate President Godswill Akpabio was not just considerate in entertaining the complaint. He complimented Senators Victor Umeh and Enyinnaya Abaribe for their courage and diligence in championing the South East’s interests.
“This is what representation is all about — standing up for your own people and ensuring equity in governance,” Akpabio said. The Senate President’s mature handling of what was a sensitive matter proved refreshing against a trend of impersonal officialdom. High office holders in Nigeria often see their positions not as a call to serve but as entitlement to be served.
It’s noteworthy that Akpabio expressed solidarity with the cause of equity and fairness spearheaded by Umeh and Abaribe. His identification with, and indeed, encouragement of the principle of inclusion is heart glowing. The disposition towards a progressive agenda raises hope of better legislative climate. Is this optimism realistic? Some analysts would say no, given the extensive reach of the political elite’s irresponsibility. Others may cite the few months left in the legislative calendar too short to effect positive change. By a similar token, however, achievement does not come in absolutes. Who says that even when the desired vision is not realised, incremental progress is of no value? Revolutions after all, sometimes cut a middle path. The Nigerian condition is so urgent that the least mitigating circumstance should be welcome. Progressive legislative work begins with availability and responsiveness. Akpabio, like Umeh Abaribe and few others record regular attendance at plenary. Taking it from there, a collaboration of progressive minds promises to make a difference in the scheme of things.
Afuba is of Governance & Development Forge, Awka.
