2023: Cede presidency to South-East, or it remains in North — Igbo in Diaspora

Forum 1 year ago

2023: Cede presidency to South-East, or it remains in North — Igbo in Diaspora

To sustain the balance of forces between North and South Nigeria, it is expedient and pragmatic for Southern Nigeria to speak now with one voice in support of South-East’s aspiration to produce Nigeria’s President in 2023.

Likewise, the two major political parties, the PDP and APC should zone the presidential ticket to the South-East.

A group of professionals from the South-East geo-political zone living in Europe and the Americas, on the platform of South East People of Nigeria in Diaspora (SEPNID), rising from a meeting held in Newcastle, United Kingdom on Tuesday, made these demands.

In a communique by its Chairman and Secretary, Enyinnaya Emma Nwaka and Oluebube Umeokoro, respectively, SEPNID appealed to the political elites in the South-West and South-South to add their voices in the agitation of the South-East to produce the next President of Nigeria in 2023 in the interest of justice, equity and fair play.

The communique stated that the Presidency, having moved from the SW to the North-West and back to SS, before moving up NW again, justice demands that the SE be given the option of producing the Presidency in 2023.

Nwaka, who elaborated further on the intents of the communique maintained that agitations to address issues of justice and equity are not novel in Nigeria’s political development, recalling that in 1999 the three major political parties, namely the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP; then All Peoples Party, APP and Alliance for Democracy, AD, all jointly zoned the presidency to the SW to produce Chief Olusegun Obasanjo flying PDP’s flag and Chief Olu Falae flying APP/AD joint ticket, and both the SS and SE jointly supported the project.

“We, members of SEPNID are therefore drawing from this page in Nigeria chequered history and calling on Southern Nigeria to speak with one voice on behalf of the SE; likewise, we are equally calling on the PDP and APC to zone their presidential ticket to the SE,” Nwaka stated.

Nwaka reiterated that joining of forces by Southern Nigeria is desirable to create a balance between North and South, as none of the six geo-political zones can on its own produce the President of Nigeria.

Nwaka further added: “The SE since 1979 had supported the emergence of presidents from other zones of Nigeria, equity demands now that power is returning  to the South, that the rest of  Southern Nigeria  rally round the SE to produce the next  President.”

Equally elaborating on the meeting and its conclusions, SEPNID’ s Secretary, Oluebube Umeokoro  added that group would draw the attention of the APC and PDP to eminently qualified SE  aspirants in their parties from which they should pick a candidate to fly their flags.

“The APC has people like former governors — Rochas Okorocha, Orji Uzor Kalu, Ogbonnaya Onu, and Governor Dave Umahi of Ebonyi State.

“It also has former House of Representative member, Emeka Nwajiuba  and former Senate President, Senator  Ken Nnamani; while PDP on the other hand has former governor,  Peter Obi; former Senate President, Senator  Pius Anyim, and the boardroom guru, Sam Ohuabunwa and others,” he added.

He urged the political parties to tap from the ingenuity of the people of the SE as represented by the galaxy of stars as Nigeria will be the ultimate beneficiary of these talents.

The SEPNID meeting had in attendance members from UK, USA and other European countries.