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The principle of zoning political offices has been a contentious issue in Nigeria. Although it is not explicitly mentioned in the 1999 Nigerian Constitution, zoning has been part of our political life since this current democratic dispensation started in 1999. However, from time to time, politicians and groups who are not favoured by the rotation arrangement tend to disparage it.
One of such politicians is former Vice President, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar. Recently, Atiku was quoted to have said that the constitution of Nigeria did not recognise the principle of zoning and had not barred anyone from contesting any political office. This has elicited various reactions from many Nigerians. The Southern and Middle Belt Alliance (SaMBA), for instance, faulted Atiku on the issue, saying his statement was disappointing and hypocritical. The group added that Atiku’s statement contradicted his previous postures as a statesman who had always demanded equity, fairness and justice in the country.
In a statement signed by its spokesman, Prince Rwang Pam Jnr, SaMBA reminded Atiku that he had, on December 15, 2010, warned the leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) not to jettison the already existing zoning of the party at its National Stakeholders Conference in 2010. It also recalled how Atiku, in his campaign for zoning in 2015, led northern PDP leaders to stage a public walkout of the PDP National Convention while the then President Goodluck Jonathan in his speech indicated that he would contest in the 2015 presidential election. SaMBA demanded to know from Atiku what has changed between 2010 and today that made him decide to fight against zoning the presidency in 2023.
The Pan Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF) similarly faulted Atiku on his current stand on zoning. According to the group, zoning and rotation of key political positions cannot be discarded in a diverse and complex society like Nigeria. It described the narrative that there was no zoning in the country’s constitution as a conscienceless mockery of our democratic evolution and the constitution. It urged Atiku and other northerners angling to succeed Buhari in 2023 to jettison their ambition as it “flies in the face of natural justice.”
Atiku himself is a product of zoning. Former President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, took him as his deputy because of zoning. So, his latest comment against zoning is self-serving. He was never known to have ever condemned the principle. We wonder why he is condemning it now. We should endeavour not to politicise the issue because it is for political inclusion and unity of the country. The founding fathers of the PDP felt that for cohesion and unity of the country there should be zoning. To assuage the South West over the annulment of June 12, 1993 presidential election won by MKO Abiola, the three dominant political parties in 1999 chose their candidates from the South West. The PDP chose Chief Olusegun Obasanjo while the Coalition of All Peoples Party (APP)/Alliance for Democracy (AD) chose Chief Olu Falae. From Obasanjo, who is from the South West, the presidency rotated to the North which was represented by the late President Umaru Yar’Adua. In accordance with the constitution, then Vice President, Goodluck Jonathan, became president after Yar’Adua death. President Muhammadu Buhari from the North emerged president thereafter following his defeat of Goodluck Jonathan, from the South. Naturally, it is the turn of the South to produce the president again.
The argument of some northerners that the South has occupied the seat of power at the centre more than the North does not hold water. Cumulatively, the North has controlled power at the centre for over 41 years out of the country’s 61 years of independence. The intricate thing about zoning is that it is not specifically mentioned in the constitution. Nevertheless, the same constitution enshrined the federal character principle which stipulates that no region should be marginalised in the scheme of things. In this context, zoning is a derivative of the federal character principle.
Section 14 (3) of the 1999 constitution states: “The composition of the Government of the Federation or any of its agencies and the conduct of its affairs shall be carried out in such a manner as to reflect the federal character of Nigeria and the need to promote national unity and also to command national loyalty thereby ensuring that there shall be no predominance of persons from a few states or a few ethnic or other sectional groups in that government or in any of its agencies.”
Besides, rotation is said to be in the constitution of the two major political parties, like the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the PDP. That is what it should be if we must ensure equity and justice. It is crucial for the survival of the country. What politicians should do is to fine-tune it so that it will not present any problem again. That is the only way the country can remain one indivisible nation.
Politicians should think more of the collective interests of Nigerians and avoid selfish actions that will not augur well for the peaceful coexistence of the country. The point is that it is the turn of the South to produce the president in 2023. When it comes to the South, the position should go to the South East that has not occupied the office of President since the advent of this current democracy. That is what natural justice and equity demand.
