Dogara: How Sultan of Sokoto made me Speaker

Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Yakubu Dogara, yesterday, dedicated his victory to the support and fatherly backing of the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar III.

Dogara defeated his opponent, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila, who was earlier elected by the leadership of the All Progressives Congres in the June 9 House of Representatives speakership mock election.

Speaking at a thanksgiving service held in his honour at the Church of Christ in all Nations (COCIN), Tafawa Balewa, Bauchi State, Sunday, the lawmaker said his victory wouldn’t have been possible without the support of the royal father. According to him, “this victory that we celebrate here today won’t have been possible without God, the Sultanate and others across the country.

“For us who are Christian minorities in the North, we should acknowledge that this victory we are celebrating here today was made possible by the intervention of the Sultan and others. We should know that there is new thinking in the North.

“We owe it a duty to make sure we unite our own part of the country and other parts of the country. My emergence as Speaker is as a result of the support of all major tribes of Nigeria and all faiths in Nigeria