Follow Us on Google
Juliana Taiwo-Obalonye, Abuja
The South South Elders Forum has declared that for the purpose of peace, stability, and fairness, the zone should be allowed to complete its second tenure in the 2023 presidency.
This is even as the members have said any attempt by the North to insist on going for the presidency again after President Muhammadu Buhari will not only breach the gentleman’s agreement of power rotation but also invite crisis that could tear the country apart.
Speaking in an interview in Abuja, at the weekend, the National Coordinator of South-South Elders Forum, His Highness, Anabs Sara-Igbe, who spoke on behalf of the forum, noted that while the North have ruled for 40 years, South West for almost 12 years, the South South has only ruled for four years while the Igbo have only ruled for six months.
According to him, aside from the South South zone the economic hob of the nation, it is only the zone that can reintegrate the South East into Nigeria, help them forget the wound of the civil war as well as industrialise the nation.
Sara Igbe, who is also the National Publicity Secretary of the Pan Niger Delta Forum, PANDEF, argued that the North was yet to comfortable to support the South East presidency because the memory of the civil war was still fresh and that Ndigbo were still bitter over the perceived marginalisation of the zone.
He also volunteered that with the recent outburst of Miyetti Allah over Amatekun, the regional secretly outfit recently launched by the South West, they too will not enjoy the support of the North for the 2023 presidency.
According to him, the South East and South West have said their only interest is in restructuring of the country and not the 2023 Presidency. The South South while fully in support of restructuring, is very much interested in the 2023 presidency and will embark on lobbying Nigerians across the country to support their desire.
Sara-Igbe said: “For us, the race for the presidency has started and it is a clear fact that there is an unconventional agreement that the presidency should go north and south.
“Presently, the presidency is in the North and they have completed their two tenure. It implies that the presidency will come back to the South. In the State of, we have three zones, the South West, the South South and the South East.
“The South West has had it’s complete tenure through President Olusegun Obasanjo, the South South had had one tenure through President Goodluck Jonathan, the South East has not got it in the new dispensation.
“But if you are talking about the whole of Nigeria, the North has ruled for over 40 years, South West has also ruled for almost 12 years, the the South East has ruled for six months and the South South has ruled for one tenure of four years. And so obviously, it is right for the South South to complete its two tenures, thereafter in the South, the South East will have a clinch of it.
“Besides that, the South East today is insisting on Biafra; it is not insisting on the presidency. We in the South South believe in the restructuring of this country but we are also interested in the presidency. We want to complete our second tenure.
“And considering our role in Nigeria – the current developed Nigeria – we believe that we are the hub carrying Nigeria; the nation should be fair to us by allowing us to complete our second tenure. When we complete our second tenure, we will now believe that Nigeria is with us.
“We are not interested in dividing Nigeria, but we are interested in repositioning Nigeria. We can assure Nigeria that the present feelings of the Igbo, when the South South man comes, he would douse it, because, the South East and the South South are brothers.
“They are of the same mother and the same father. While the South West and the South South are also brothers of the same father but different mothers. So, we believe that when the South South man is completing his tenure, he will talk to the Igbo out of Biafra.
“Although the three regions – South East, South South, South West in the South and the Middle Belt in the North believe in restructuring, the South South is willing to stand by restructuring but that does not mean that we will throw away the presidency. So we are appealing to Nigerians to please do us that small favour of giving us the second term.
“We know that Nigerians can do it like when the Yoruba agitated; all the parties then – the Yoruba were allowed to vie for the presidency – Obasanjo, Falaye and co. So we are saying all the parties in Nigeria should field South South persons.
“Nigerians can choose the best amongst them. If a South South man comes it will help Nigeria, our oil production will increase, our gas production will increase, and we will also give intellectual contribution.
“We will carry everyone along, we will have an intellectual think tank that will assist the president in ensuring that every part of this country is adequately managed, presented and favoured. We believe in one Nigeria and that is why we are appealing that Nigeria should work with us so that we will not divide this country.
“There is no need for us to divide ourselves, there are misunderstandings which we can resolve. There are complex countries in the whole world yet they come together, they work together. Even America that today we are celebrating was not one country, it was an amalgamation of so many states and despite their differences but because they have fiscal federalism, because their economy is restructured, they have financial autonomy, everybody is on their own doing their own thing and that is what Nigeria needs.
“So we are appealing to Nigerians to do us this favour of allowing us to produce the presidency.”
Asked to explain how the agitation of the Nnamdi Kanu-led separatist group, Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB has become the official position of the apex socio-cultural group of Ndigbo, Ohaneze, he said: “Well, few months ago, the spokesman of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, the spokesman for the South West, the Afenifere and the spokesman of PANDEF debated on this issue. And ab initio, Afenifere said they are not interested in the presidency and Ohanaeze Ndigbo also said they are not interested in the 2023 presidency, rather, they are interested in restructuring.
“We in the South South supported restructuring wholeheartedly and we believe that restructuring will help Nigeria but we believe strongly in the presidency. Because, we believe that we have not completed our second tenure and it is our right constitutionally to go two terms.
“And if Nigerians were gracious enough to allow us one tenure, they should be able to give us the second tenure so that we will also rest our case and allow the presidency to rotate.”
On the plans by the North to run for 2023 presidency again, the elder statement said that would be an invitation to anarchy.
Sara-Igbe said: “For the North to insist on getting the presidency again, they do not mean well. And that is why the Arewa group came out boldly to condemn the North advocating for another tenure and they put their weight behind the South South presidency. Because, if you want stability in this country, we must be fair to all and don’t underrate anybody.
“When Yar’Adua was here, he wanted to use military might against the Niger Delta and within months, the economy was crippled. He rather begged for amnesty and gave us the things that we required. Buhari came and thought he could use military might and the economy was crippled, we went into economic recession until PANDEF came and salvaged this country. So, you cannot say anybody cannot do anything.
“Even the Igbo that are not happy today can do something. The Niger Delta can do something, the Middle Belt can do something, every part of Nigeria has the potential to do something because we are a union. And we don’t want crisis in this country. If the North wants to hold on to power, then they don’t want peace in Nigeria and I think the North will not do that.”
Asked what should be expected if the North insists on retaining power in 2023, he said: “Well, except they want chaos in this country. If they want chaos in this country, then they can insist. But I can tell you that the South South is a stabilising force in Nigeria; we will stabilise the country and we will not allow Nigeria to go to that level where there will be conflict.”
