The Senator-elect for the Imo West (Orlu) constituency of Imo State, Nigeria, Osita Izunaso has appealed to the leadership of the All Progressives Congress APC and his colleagues to support him towards becoming the Senate president of the tenth National Assembly.
Osita Izunaso while speaking with Roundoffnews, confirmed that he had paid his dues having made many sacrifices to sustain the party from its formation stage, hence he should be considered for the position.
According to Osita Izunaso, he is the best man for the position and should be supported rather that allowing those who were never part of the dream and who did not share in the pain we went through to clinch on the seat.
He said”I believe I have what it takes, the capacity to lead the 10th Senate having been around legislative political corridors for a very long while. I have been in the House of Representatives as far back as 2003, in the Senate 2007, and I have run our Party APC as the National Organizing Secretary for five solid years during which I handled two conventions, one in 2014, infact, two conventions in 2014.
“The first National Convention of APC took place in Abuja in 2014, where we elected the Party officials, after which we moved to Lagos in December same 2014 to elect our Presidential flag bearer; and I want to beat my chest to say that under my watch as the National Organizing Secretary, we never had a single litigation.
“We conducted 36 governorship primaries, there was not a single litigation, why, because we did the right thing. You will agree with me that, that is what it means to show capacity. You know we battled a sitting President, therefore, we needed to do everything right to wrestle power from them; so if I could hold the Party at that level from its formation stage when we didn’t even know we were going to win, why won’t I be able to lead the Red Chambers effectively as Senate President.
“I am a founding member of APC, we travelled to Lagos every weekend for good six months during the formation stages, to coin the name and get it right, we designed the logo, bringing together components of other parties making up the proposed APC then before going for registration in the corporate affairs. Governor Fashola is alive today, he knows all I am saying because he was part of the whole thing from day one; he was a member of the committee, we met everyday for good three months in Abuja putting together the APC constitution.
“”So for me, I can actually say, it should be a *”Pay Back Time for me”.* Having sacrificed my time, energy, scarce resources and services for the APC, I think it is only fair and just for the Party to think it wise to compensate me.
“I think the time is now. *Having served selflessly without blemish through rain and shine, during turbulent times when there was no ray of hope for the Party, I think I deserve to be compensated;* and having contested election and fortunately returned to the Senate, I think I am well qualified to vie for the position of the Senate President, and why won’t I seek for it and why wouldn’t APC in their wisdom not consider and compensate me?
“I’ve paid my dues in the Party, I have sacrificed a lot enough to earn me adequate compensation from the APC; if I am not qualified, that should had been a different ball game.
Osita Izunaso said the people dragging the position of Senate President with me today were in PDP, “they were not in APC, they castigated the Party then as *”dead on arrival”* during the formation stage, and recall, PDP did everything within their powers then to frustrate the registration of the Party at the corporate affairs commission because they were in power.
“We formed and funded the Party, nurtured and ran it through its formation stage till today, some of them just joined the Party about 4-5years ago. Yes, it is said the more the merrier, so, we heartily welcome them to APC, but if we hadn’t sustained the Party and won, they may not have joined.
