Senate President Godswill Akpabio has suggested that efforts are underway to secure favourable outcomes for serving senators affected by recent party primary elections, assuring lawmakers that they had been “promised very few disappointments.”
Gatekeepers News reports that Akpabio made the remark on Tuesday while welcoming senators back from a three-week recess and the Sallah break as plenary resumed.
The Senate President congratulated political parties that recently conducted their primaries and candidates who emerged victorious. However, beyond the routine welcome address, his comments appeared aimed at reassuring senators grappling with the fallout from contentious nomination contests.
Several lawmakers have either lost their party tickets, become embroiled in disputes arising from controversial primaries, or are weighing their political options ahead of the next election cycle.
“I know that there will always be victories and disappointments,” Akpabio told lawmakers.
He then delivered a statement that immediately drew attention within the chamber.
“And in this Senate, we are promised that we will have very few disappointments. And I do know that the Senate Leader and the leadership of the Senate is working very hard towards that.”
The remark sparked speculation that efforts may be ongoing behind the scenes to address the political setbacks suffered by some serving senators during the recently concluded primaries.
Although Akpabio did not elaborate on the nature of those efforts, observers interpreted the statement as a signal that political negotiations, reconciliations or other arrangements could still emerge ahead of the next election season.
His comments came shortly after he jokingly cautioned a senator against defecting to another political party, highlighting growing concerns over possible defections following disputed primary elections across the country.
In recent weeks, the atmosphere within the Senate has been marked by uncertainty as several lawmakers who expected straightforward renomination battles encountered stiff opposition, shifting alliances and unexpected outcomes.
Against this backdrop, Akpabio’s assurance that the Senate leadership was working towards ensuring “very few disappointments” was widely seen as an attempt to boost morale among affected lawmakers.
The Senate President, however, stressed that electoral contests naturally produce winners and losers, maintaining that democracy remains the ultimate beneficiary of the process.
Beyond politics, Akpabio used his address to express concern over the worsening security situation in the country, particularly the abduction of pupils and teachers in Oyo State.
Describing the incident as “an assault on our collective humanity,” he said the inability to protect children poses a threat to the nation’s future and warned against politicising national tragedies.
“There is always a temptation to divide, to accuse and to seek advantage from tragedy,” he said.
Akpabio argued that terrorists and kidnappers do not discriminate based on political affiliation, ethnicity or religion and called for a united national response to insecurity.
He also urged Senate leaders to accelerate plans for a proposed security summit aimed at producing legislative recommendations to strengthen the efforts of security agencies.
Nevertheless, it was his assurance of “very few disappointments” for senators navigating difficult political circumstances that generated the most discussion within the chamber.
For lawmakers bruised by intense primary battles, the message appeared to offer hope that their political journeys may not yet be over, even as uncertainty remains over what form any intervention by the Senate leadership could take.
