News Report: "Bankole Boys" Fight Back; Elect Renegade Party Member As Speaker

Aminu Tambuwal: New Speaker

To force the Presidency to intervene in the soon to start prosecution of the immediate former Speaker of Nigeria's House of Representatives, Mr. Dimeji Bankole for corruption while in office, confidants of the erstwhile Speaker yesterday disregarded instruction from their party, the Peoples Democratic Party(PDP), which has majority in the House, to elect Mrs. Mulikat Adeola-Akande, from Oyo state in South-Western Nigeria, where the position of Speaker was zoned to by the party, as Speaker. PDP national leadership settled for Akande at the insistence of the Presidency.

A renegade party member from Sokoto state, Alhaji Aminu Tambuwal was elected as Speaker instead, while Mr. Emeka Ihedioha from Imo state was elected as Deputy Speaker. Tambuwal and Ihedioha are confidants of the former Speaker, who played major roles in the outgone 6th parliament. They are also believed to have participated in the alleged corruption for which Mr. Bankole was arrested and detained.

Checks by chidi opara reports revealed that plan for the election of Aminu Tambuwal and Emeka Ihedioha was finalized  in a closed door meeting, earlier reported by us, in Kano last Friday by some close confidants of the former Speaker, who are also known as "Bankole Boys", when it became obvious that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission(EFCC) was bent on arresting and prosecuting the former Speaker and subsequently, his confidants.

A Lagos based Journalist, who is also Media Consultant to one of Dimeji Bankole's confidants informed us that "the man sought the intervention of Mr. President, but he was ignored".

A top level EFCC contact revealed to chidi opara reports that "we cannot send the man to prison when his men are in such positions, the case would just frizzle out in court".