2023: Why it’s Unfair if Northern Governors Fail to Support Southern Presidency, APC Chieftains Reveal
- APC chieftains have reacted to the position of northern governors over calls for power shift to the south ahead of 2023
- Members of the Ebonyi state chapter of the party said the north had no justification for not backing a southerner to succeed Buhari
- Okenwa Uka, the southeast coordinator of the APC Youth League, believes the south should be allowed to take a shot at the presidency next
Abakaliki - Ahead of the 2023 general elections, chieftains of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Ebonyi state chapter have kicked against the position of the northern governors over power shift to the south.
The Punch reports members of the ruling party made this known in separate interviews in Abakaliki, on Sunday, October 3.
Source: Facebook
According to them, the north had no justification, for not backing a southerner to take over from President Muhammadu Buhari at the end of his second tenure.
The southeast coordinator of the APC Youth League, Okenwa Uka explained that the current situation was an issue of conscience.
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Uka said although the rotational presidency was not enshrined in the party's constitution, the southern region should be allowed to take a shot at the presidency in 2023.
He went on to add that any zone or part of the country that desires to lead next should have to negotiate for it with the other zones.
The APC cordinator revealed that the south can achieve its dream by diplomacy and negotiation.
Victor Chukwu, the majority leader, Ebonyi state House of Assembly on his part observed that the country’s democracy was just beginning to display signs of future potential.
Chukwu noted that the APC leadership didn’t need to refer to the constitution to address every national issue.
Northern governors reject rotation of presidency
Reacall that northern governors had rejected the principle of rotational presidency, saying it is against Nigeria's constitution, Premium Times added.
The chairman of the Northern Governors’ Forum (NGF) and Plateau state governor, Simon Lalong stated this after a meeting in Kaduna. They rejected the position of their southern counterparts for a power shift.
2023: Field northern candidate, lose southerners support
Earlier, Legit.ng reported that Rotimi Akeredolu, the governor of Ondo state, said any political party that fields a northern candidate for presidency in 2023 risks losing the support of southerners.
The governor made this known on Friday, September 17, in an interview on Channels Television on the resolutions of the Southern Governors’ Forum on the 2023 elections and the fact that the presidency must be zoned to the south.
Akeredolu, who is the chairman of the forum, said this was for the sake of justice and fairness.
Zoning is unconstitutional
Meanwhile, Legit.ng had previously reported that a former governor of Nasarawa state, Senator Abdullahi Adamu, told those agitating for the power shift to the southern part of the country in 2023 to bury their thought.
It was reported that Adamu who is the senator representing Nasarawa West senatorial district in the National Assembly described the zoning as unconstitutional.
According to him, since the idea of zoning is not in the nation’s constitution, every eligible Nigerian was free to contest the 2023 presidential election regardless of his or her state of origin.
Source: Legit.ng
