Some allies of President-elect Bola Tinubu have reportedly clashed over the positions of Chief of Staff and Speaker of the House of Representatives ahead of his inauguration.
The current Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, and Lagos lawmaker James Faleke are reportedly at odds over these two critical roles.
Faleke, a longtime Tinubu associate, is widely expected to be Tinubu’s first choice for Chief of Staff.
He is, however, interested in the Speakership and has been promoting his candidate to Tinubu.
Meanwhile, Gbajabiamila has increased his lobbying efforts and is now considered the frontrunner for the position of Chief of Staff.
He, too, has ambitions for the Speakership and plans to install a loyalist in the House of Representatives.
According to an anonymous source who spoke with Vanguard, Tinubu is more comfortable letting members choose and has not endorsed either candidate.
The source stated;
Tinubu is ready to work with any member of the House that is a product of his colleague’s decisions after all the consultations.
The source went on to criticize the actions of Gbajabiamila and Faleke as “shameful” and “selfish.”
According to the source, lawmakers-elect should vote independently and not be swayed by the candidates presented by Gbajabiamila or Faleke.
They also emphasized that neither candidate has Tinubu’s approval and is only interested in his or her own interests.