various higher capacities in the Senate. He spoke, in this interview, on the constitution amendment,  why the South South Zone recently adopted President Goodluck Jonathan and why the people of Akwa Ibom are clamouring for the return of Governor Godswill Akpabio  among other national issues. Excerpts:

YOUR state, Akwa Ibom, and the South South zone recently adopted President Jonathan for the 2011 presidency. Now that there is a threath  by the North not to succumb, how do you want to counter this move?
The issue of countering does not arise because one good turn deserves another. I have been of the opinion that everybody should count me out of zoning policy, rather, we should consider merit as essential ingredient for who should rule Nigeria. Though President Jonathan is from the South South, he is not going to be the president of the South South. He is going to be the president of Nigeria. That is what  Nigerians should look at. We should ask some pertinent questions such as :Is he a detribalised person.Is he a religious fanatic or someone who believes in where somebody comes from  rather than  the merit of the person that should be appointed or made to occupy a position in his cabinet? If we have somebody like that, which I believe he is anyway, then I think  we should  play down on zoning. Zoning is relative. It depends on how you look at it. President Jonathan is a brand for Nigeria. You can look at his background; his humble beginning  and assess him. He has been a good follower, apparently he will be a good leader because having been patient enough to be following people; to be loyal to different authorities he had worked under, I believe that as someone who had worn the shoe, he knows where it pinches. I believe, on the aggregate,  he is a good material to lead this country at this critical time. The issue of South South/ South North and so on, in my own opinion, should be played down. I believe that the man will develop this country and take it to the level beyond where we are today. Talking about the North, who are the people coming out from the North?  They are the same people that had been coming out and doing nothing rather than to come and maintain the status quo of no development, merry-go-round and then the system goes on. Looking at even where they came from, there is no drastic development and of course, we have paid our dues. We have always been working in collaboration with the North and if by God’s divine grace, this is the time for South South to assume the office, I think we need that co operation and support.

There is the fear that in the event  that Mr President picks the PDP ticket, there may be a mass pull out of key Northern leaders from the party. How do you intend to approach this?
Those that will vote for the president are not PDP members, they are Nigerians. Nigerians are the ones to vote. I don't know of those who will  pull out and the reason for pulling out but I think that is a completely non issue. Pulling out for what? If they pull out, people will also pull in.  This is a game of interest. I believe the  credentials of the president will surpass this sentimental issue.

The Northern caucus believes that all this pro Jonathan crusade is aimed at thwarting an earlier gentlemen's agreement by the leadership of the party which, according to them, is a breach of agreement.
I didn’t know there was an agreement. What type of agreement was it? It was not in writing so it is subject to different interpretations . And you said it was gentlemen agreement, what about women?.

What about the youth because both the women and youths are members of the party. Why should only the men sit down and agree without taking other interests into consideration? That is one. Secondly, we are talking about the eligibility of the candidate. That should be the issue. It is the issue of the president of the whole country. That is what we should look at. We need somebody that will raise Nigeria’s consciousness in the minds of every Nigerian. I think this president is a brand for that.

Was that  the reason for the PortHarcourt endorsement of the president by the South South leaders?
No. Charity begins at home. We must show that we support him. If you don’t say that your candidate is good, who will do it for you?. Of course, we started in Akwa Ibom. We, in Akwa Ibom, have authorised and mandated our governor, by unanimous decision to recontest and lead us in other areas. It wasn’t a party action. Since the governor is a political leader in the state, he will lead us to carry on with the political campaign of the president. Where ever the president goes, he will take the whole people of Akwa Ibom State to the place.

Beyond the issue of the fact that President Jonathan is the incumbent, what are the other qualities that the people of Akwa Ibom saw in him before the entire region threw support for him?
Akwa Ibom people are always the first. We did not even talk of incumbency. It was a joint ticket. The ticket was not circulated by us but by divine inspiration. That ticket must continue because you cannot just shift the goal post in the middle of the game. That is what people want to do. They have started the game. The game was for eight years. The ticket of  Yar’Adua  is what we are still going to continue. Yar’Adua government started amnesty programme and its implementation. Somewhere along the line, unfortunately, the president passed on. So, who is the person to continue to maintain this status quo and move the country away from where it was? It is the man that was with him in that ticket.  It is that ticket we are saying should continue. Everybody saw it that the late president and president Jonathan worked together  hand in hand as against what it used to be. Even upon this, during the crisis period, we saw him, he was reluctant, and the circumstances that made him to be the president is known to Nigerians. And by providence, he is in the saddle and we are saying that for anybody to continue to implement strictly the programmes of the late Yar’Adua, it must be the vice president who was with him and President Jonathan happens to be the person to continue with the ticket.

Is there a South South agenda for him?
There is none to the best of my knowledge. He is the president of Nigeria and not a zonal president.
Mr President has told the world to expect credible elections in 2011 and  INEC appears not too comfortable with the existing voters’ register few months to the election period. Is INEC and indeed,

Nigeria ready for credible elections next year?
We are very ready . INEC requested for N76billion and the president has approved. The president has said, and all of us agreed, that all votes must count and there must be free and  and fair election. The National Assembly is ready and has been giving every necessary backing. INEC is ready. The president is ready. I am sure that Nigeria is ready.

Some members of the public are of the opinion that the National Assembly contributed a lot to the problems of INEC particularly in the area of constitution amendment bill

You know this is democracy, it is not like a military government where a decree can be passed in the night even without being implemented. In democracy, there are interests; there are other parties who may not even want elections to hold. Some will want 58 political parties registered.  Some are just there to cause confusion and to pass a bill is not an easy thing. One, it has to pass through the due processes from first reading to second reading,  the committee level, then call for public hearing where all the interest groups, the civil society, the professionals and all experts in election matters will contribute before it comes back. It is not an easy thing to make a law. Amending the electoral act itself was dependent, to a large extent, on amending the constitution. Most of the critical positions in the electoral act were there in the constitution so, you have to amend the position in the constitution before you can touch those ones even if you have amended the electoral act without amending the position of the constitution, it would have come to no effect because it would have  been unconstitutional . Anything that is worth doing at all is worth doing well. The time constraint is human factor. If Nigerians want to do the review of voters’ register, they will do it. It is not the time, it is the will power, the consciousness and the Nigerian factor. If we do away with those sentimental  issues and say we must move forward and everybody agrees to that, then  we will move forward.

Why did the senate upturn the Isiaka Adeleke-led committee’s recommendation on election time table?
The senate did not upturn any time table.In democracy, anything can happen because this is a matter of vote. If majority votes against any issue, that is the final in a true democracy. You can consult widely but whatever the majority says is the answer. So, the issue of upturning Senator Adeleke’s recommendation does not arise. It is completely uncalled for.

Why did the senate arrange the election time table in such a way that the National Assembly and presidential elections would  come first?
It can come from anywhere. Any election can come any time. It is a question of what the majority says.

Governor Godswill Akpabio said  something like endorsing all the National Assembly members in the state during your recent book launch. What have you done in your various constituencies  to merit this blanket endorsement?
Let me say that we were the first to endorse His Excellency long time ago in view of his remarkable achievements and his good plans for the state. We did this purely on merit. On why we deserve his own endorsement,  I would have loved you to go to my constituency and direct this question at them because in my place, there is a saying that a dancer does not know how he dances, it is only those who are watching you that can say whether you are dancing well or not. For me, I am not only a Senator, I have been with the people for a long time and they followed me all through the period I started with them till now so, you cannot actually compartmentalise my own performance. Let me say that I have served my people in various capacities. I had served as chairman of Nsit Ubium local government, Attorney general and Commissioner for Justice and a Director, Akwa Ibom Savings and Loans limited among several other positions.  Concerning what my governor said, I believe it is because of the confidence he has in us. In some states, some Senators don’t see eye to eye with their governors for reasons I do not know because by rule, the functions of  the Senators, members of the House of Representatives and that of the governor are complementary or  supposed to be  complementary since the interest of the state is the paramount thing in the minds of all. We have to do everything in the interest of our people. When  the national museum was to be established in Uyo, assuming we were fighting with the governor, he would not have approved the land for us to have the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. Because we are working together, he approved the land , the contract has been awarded, completed and put to use. That is the synergy that should exist instead of fighting. Some people will say that we should be fighting the governor by now and I said for what, when I am not Michael Tyson?. I am elected as a Senator. I am not elected to come and fight. The truth is when we fight, it is the state that suffers for it. We attend the same caucus meetings with the governor. The governor also attends our meetings. In Abuja, when we have caucus meeting to discuss issues about our state, he would come and brief us. He would brief us on what is going on in the state and we will also tell him what is going on at the National Assembly

What is the state caucus doing concerning the sour relationship between the incumbent governor and his immediate predecessor, Gov Attah?
The caucus has done a lot and is still doing more

Kidnapping appears to be a booming business particularly in the South South and South East now. What role is the National Assembly playing to curb this ugly trend?
The National Assembly has done what it ought to do. It has passed the resolution asking the executive to wade in because we don’t have anything we can use to stop kidnapping. Our duty is to make laws, pass resolutions and give directions as to where the executive will go . I think they are doing everything  possible in that regard. The president has spoken. The Inspector General of Police and other security agencies have taken positions and I think they are doing a lot in that regard. Apart from that, I believe it is a collective decision. The kidnappers live in the communities either in their own houses or in people’s houses.  

There is the believe that virtually all leaders in the Niger Delta region have their respective militant groups working for them and championing their political agenda. How will you address this and which of the camps do you belong to?
I don’t know anything  about that. I am hearing that for the first time from you. I don’t have any militant group anyway.

What would you say are the achievements of the senate in this current dispensation?
The duty of the senate is to make laws and we have made laws.  And of course,the leadership of the senate is headed by an experienced person that had passed through the rudiment of governance and he is somebody that carries everybody along. Senators believe in his quality and of course, handling the constitution amendment without the good leadership of the Senate President and his ability to give good direction, I don’t know whether that would have been possible. We have passd masses-oriented bills and have, through our various actions, ensured stability in the country. You will agree with me that the senate of today is more matured, focused, result-oriented than what it used to be.