Displaying items by tag: 2023

Pasto Ituah Ighodalo, Senoir Pastor of the Trinity House Church, is of the opinion that what Nigerian’s need is a good and competent President.

The clergyman as guest on City Talks with Reuben Abati is that talking about rotational Presidency, we are talking about dividing the pie and not making a bigger pie.

Zoning and rotational presidency has been on the front burner ahead of the 2023 election.

Some have argued that the presidency should be rotated between the North and the South

And some other people have questioned the legality of zoning.

According to their substantive argument, the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria has no room for zoning or “rotational presidency”. What it provides for in Section 14 (3) is the necessity to reflect Nigeria’s federal character in the composition of the government and its agencies. The aim of the federal character clause, as underscored in Section 14 (2) (c), is to ensure the participation of the people in their government.

Pastor Ighodalo stated that it doesn’t matter to him, where the gentleman or lady comes from, as long as they are competent; they are welcome.

He mentioned that “It is an unfortunate reality where some sections of Nigerians for whatever fear or anxiety or whatever the British may have instilled into their minds, feel that except they are in certain key positions they will not be reassured that they have a stake in Nigeria or they feel they may be marginalized.

“Nobody should feel that way and if any President no matter where he is coming from, marginalizes any part of Nigeria or any person in Nigeria, then that person is not fit for purpose. We should be looking for person that is fit for purpose.”

He blamed the root cause of agitation on competence.

According to him, “Nigerians are feeling a little bit agitated that the Fulani wants to dominate almost everything.

“But the truth of it is that, if the northerners or Fulani have shown competence, and a lot of equity in the distribution of things, and not seem to have shown themselves as wanting to favour a group over the other, nobody will be complaining.

“If most of the appointments they have made had been based on competence and not necessarily parochialism or showing preferences here and there nobody will complain, but it is clear that most of the appointments that have come through; have not really being based on competence.”

Sonny Iroche, a seasoned and infrastructure consultant, supports the concept of zoning and he is of the view that it does not imply that the presidency should be zone to a lame dog.

Iroche said this as guest on CityTalks with Reuben Abati on the topic; Rotational Presidency.

He said that the presidency should be zone with good value, not only a geographical zoning; “it must be ethical, there must be competence and meritocracy should be considered,” Iroche said

On 5^th July 13, 2021 eleven governors and four deputy governors converged in Lagos for Southern Governors Forum meeting and one of their major resolutions, what is also known as the Lagos declaration is for power to shift to the south in 2023.

However, the coalition of the northern group have objected to the “Southern Governors declaration,” they described it as “purely sentimental” and they said the southern governors are making an unconstitutional case.

The coalition of the northern group, therefore argues that the constitution does not say that power should go to a particular part of the country.

The north central are saying that under the democratic dispensation, power should go next to them.

But according to Iroche, “They keep saying that it is not constitutional; have we abided by the letters and the spirit of the constitution when it is in other aspects? No!

“The constitution talks about federal character in employment. Is there federal character in the security aspect of this country? The answer is no!

Is there federal character that is reflective in all other aspect of our national life? The answer is a capital no!

“Why do we pick and choose where it suits us?”

He said that the North East, North West, have produced a President, The North Central has produced Heads of State, the South West and the South South, have produced a President.

He argues that the only zone in the six geopolitical zones that have not produced a President or Head of State is the South East.

According to him, on these bases we believe the once three Rs, Reconciliation, Rehabilitation and Reconstruction.  

He pointed out that the Igbos have been an integral part of this country, making strides nationally and internationally in commerce, finance and in every aspect of human endeavour and dignity.

He said, “we strongly feel that for fairness and justice to reign, justice was embedded in our national anthem that was changed by Olusegun Obasanjo, but the second one also has justice.”

He implied that there will be no peace without justice.

Iroche said that the Igbo’s do not want undue favouritism, by extension every Nigerian.  

He also said, “What every Nigerian want is a level playing field, for us to actualize our God’s ordained potential as a potentially great nation.”

Iroche mentioned further, “What we are saying is to complete the round of the rotation. Eight years in the life of a nation, is not asking for too much. The south easterners have done well in every aspect of life. Why don’t you try them out so that we are no longer the poverty capital of the world, so that we are no longer a laughing stock of companies leaving Nigeria and going to Ghana and other African countries?

 “Why don’t we give it a chance?”

Chief Sunday Adeyemo, popularly known as Sunday Igboho, on Saturday, that until the South-West region becomes an independent nation, elections will no longer be allowed.

Igboho, said this at the rally held at the Nelson Mandela Freedom Park in Osogbo, Osun State.

There was heavy presence of the police and the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps at the venue, which forced the organisers to change tactics at the rally.

Despite the heavy presence of the police, NSCDC and the Department of State Securities, the participants entered the venue and staged the rally.

 Igboho insisted that the Yoruba people would no longer be part of Nigeria, saying lopsidedness in sharing leadership positions in the military and paramilitary, and high crime rate linked to Fulani herders across the region would not end until the Yoruba became an independent nation.

He also demanded immediate action by all stakeholders in the region to actualise an independent Yoruba nation, saying if they acted otherwise, the people would revolt against them.

He told his supporters to stop attacking governors in the South-West region, In his opinion, that the South-West governors are in support of efforts the region is making to get an independent Yoruba nation.

Chief Igboho admonished them that Federal Government might stop their monthly allocation of governors from the south west if they declared an open support for this cause.

He condemned the killing of residents of Iseyin by Customs men, saying failure to prosecute criminal herdsmen had emboldened them to commit more atrocities in the region, While calling for an immediate end to the prosecution of Oodua People’s Congress members, who arrested Isikilu Wakili in Igangan, Oyo State.

He said, “I can’t be cowed or intimidated. They said I would be arrested. Who would dare do that? We are no longer part of Nigeria. We won’t have anything to do with them again. There is no election again in Yorubaland until we have a Yoruba nation. Those in authority initially thought we were joking when we demanded an independent Yoruba nation.

“All our governors are with us. From Oyo, Ogun and Ondo to Ekiti, Lagos and Osun, they are supporting us, but they can’t do it openly. Allocation they give them in Abuja may stop if they do it openly. So, don’t abuse them again. Governor (Gboyega) Oyetola was informed I will be in Osun and he allowed us to come here. All our monarchs are with us.

“We are also demanding an immediate end to prosecution of OPC men that were arrested in Ibarapa land. That is part of the injustice we are talking about. They are still locked up. They didn’t commit any crime. They only stopped and arrested criminals. All the heads of the military, paramilitary and police are Fulani men. We won’t have anything to do with them again.”

In his remarks, ex-Director General, National Troupe, Akin Adejuwon, said the group, Ilana Omo Oodua, was behind the rally, meant to sensitise them to why they should stop a “gradual takeover” of their land by Fulani bandits.

He said, “The rally is to sensitise people, especially the youth, because they own the land and some Fulani bandits are gradually taking over the land which belongs to our youth. Once they grab the message, 1,000 Fulani bandits would no longer be able to confront them. We are doing sensitisation across major cities in Yorubaland.”

However, Senator Shehu Sani, who represented Kaduna Central in the 8th Senate, said the rainfall that “dispersed” the agitators at the Nelson Mandela Freedom Park was a “divine message” for them to change their minds and embrace a united Nigeria.

Sani, in a tweet, said, “The heavy rainfall that dispersed the separatist agitators in Osogbo is a divine message for them to change course and work for the unity of our country. The idea of an ethnic or religious purist state stems from a xenophobic mind intolerant to co-existence.”

Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu stated that power-grabbers should wait for two more years to take over power in 2023 through the ballot boxes.

Shehu, spoke on Channels Television’s ‘Sunrise Daily’ programme said that the growing disaffection, dissatisfaction and insecurity in the country had made some persons declare their support for Yoruba Nation and Biafra Republic.

Shehu described these agitators as “charlatans” sponsored to bully the President thinking he will cringe or dreaded.

He declared that the Buhari regime will not be kicked out of power by any group through blackmail.

Shehu urged people with “strong ambitions” to wait for another two years to contest in the 2023 presidential election.

Governor Hope Uzodimma of Imo State yesterday spoke to the State House Correspondents after a meeting behind closed doors with President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa, Abuja on his (Mr. President) position over the agitation among many stakeholders in south East that the “2023 Presidency should be zoned.”

He added that the decision of who flies the Presidential ticket rests squarely with the respective political parties.

He said that, it would be recalled that the Chief Whip of the Senate and the former Governor of Abia State, Senator Orji Uzor Kalu was recently quoted saying that anyone can contest for the Presidency under the All Progressives Congress (APC), since it has not zoned the 2023 ticket to a particular part of the country.

Uzodimma said, “Well, you know the position is not vacant now. There is a sitting President and we are practicing partisan democracy and not tribal democracy. So, the emergence of presidential candidate will come on party by party basis, not tribe by tribe basis.

“But if there are other internal factors that will form part of the considerations for parties taking decision of course, that will be entirely the job of the leadership of those political parties and I think that is the right thing to do,” He said.