Politics
2023: Presidency must be zoned to Igbos or opened to all – Ondo lawmaker makes case for Igbo presidency
A member of the Ondo State House of Assembly, Tomide Akinribido, has argued that the next President to replace President Muhammadu Buhari should be from the southeast.
Ahead of the 2023 presidential elections, there has been pressure on the two leading political parties, All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) to present candidates from the southern part of the country, over claims of marginalisation.
Southern leaders have also been vocal about the need to zone the presidency to the region, arguing that it will ease calls for secessions from agitated voices.
But on Monday, September 27, Governors from the northern region after a meeting in Kaduna condemned the clamour for zoning and said the claim is not in line with the dictates of the constitution.
Joining the debate, Akinribido, the deputy minority leader in the Ondo Assembly. took to his Twitter account on Tuesday and said southern leaders are driven by selfishness when they clamour for the presidency to be zoned to their region.
Also Read: Northern Governors tackle southern counterparts on zoning presidency
He added that if the leaders from the south want to be fair, they should agree that the presidency should be zoned to only the southeast.
“All clamours about power shift by southern leaders are mere selfish and personal agitations to me EXCEPT they decide to be fair and just by demanding for power to shift to the SOUTHEAST,” he said.
“If the zoning agitation is not for the Igbos to benefit, count me out of it.”
The tweet of the lawmaker generated reaction and responding to someone who agreed with him, the lawmaker further said with a quote tweet, “If it is not about Igbo Presidency, then it should be thrown open to all, including the north. If we are not going to be just and equitable, then all should be fair in war!”
