A coalition of civil society organizations (CSOs) under the auspices of Concerned Nigeria Citizens for Power Shift to the South have urged all political parties to consider what will retain the unity of the country and zone presidency to southern states come 2023.
The convener of the coalition, Femi Osabinu who stated this during a world press conference, Tuesday in Abuja cautioned that no political party will exist if there is no country called Nigeria.
“Let it be known that, there won’t be either APC, PDP or any other political party if there is no country called Nigeria. National interest must override personal interest of those pushing parties to jettison the conventional rotation agenda of Presidency.”
“We hereby reiterate our call for the need of our political parties to shift power to the South for equity, justice and unity of the country as this will sustain our unity and ensure that the country remains one with each region seeing herself as stakeholder in the Nigeria Project. We must respect Zoning, and now is the time for this to be done.” The convener stated.
Osabinu urged parties to allow national interest override personal interest of those pushing parties to jettison the conventional rotation agenda of Presidency.
He urged politicians not to compound the woes of a country that is already overwhelmed with myriads of problems ranging from insecurity, banditry, terrorism, decayed infrastructure by zoning the position of the president to the north.
“We have watched with keen interest various agitations across the zones of our federating units, positions of our renounced ethnic nationalities on need to zone Presidency to Southern part of the country come 2023.
“We have also noticed how unstable and highly political most of our political parties are responding to the call for power rotation, this has made us to come together to lend our voice to the voice of reasoning, voice of unified Nigeria and greater Nigeria by urging all concerned political parties to zone Presidency to the South.
“There is no superior argument for this at times like this in the anal of history of our dear nation. There is no doubt that the North has had its fair share of the country leadership for the past seven years and now it is time to zone the Presidency to the Southern part of Nigeria at this point of our history as a nation.
“Since return to civil rule in 1999, there has been an unwritten conventional way for power rotation between the North and South.
“It baffles us that as the debate intensifies and party national conventions draw nearer, most political parties are planning to play down the zoning arrangement with selfish excuses of population spread across the country.
“It has become more glaring and obvious that, our bane of problem if they go ahead by jettisoning the zoning arrangement is caused by the selfish political class, and Nigerian must be aware of them.
“This decision doesn’t respect unity of the country, and might throw the country into confusion and shake the unity of the country. We have witnessed sharp division along religion line ahead of 2023 general election. The current security situation and supremacy of a region is also affecting and shaking the unity bedrock of the nation.
“Political gladiators across the divide have taken up arms and fight via exchange of words on power rotation. Some want it to remain in the North, while others want it back to the South for equality sake.
“Presidential election in Nigeria is highly influential and powerful as we all confers greatest sense of belonging to the federation on any ethnic or geopolitical zone that produces the President.
“This no doubt has deepened the agitation for power shift by various regions and we thus resolve to implore all major political parties to have a deep think ahead of their national conventions ensure that power rotates to the south as this will ensuring that the country remains united and sense of belonging is given to all by zoning the Presidential tickets to the Southern Part of the Country come 2023.
“While we know power is not given alarcate, we will deploy our structures across the country and within the various parties to further project the call and agitation to save the soul of the country.
“Northern region has been in power since 2015 and after exhausting the constitutional Eight Years by 2023, it is expected that power will rotate to the South. This is lawful and can guarantee peace and unity of the country not the contrary.
“We thus urge all political parties to follow what will retain the unity of the country and zone presidency to southern states come 2023. Parties should stop playing politics with Nigerians.
“The country is overwhelmed with myriads of problems ranging from insecurity, banditry, terrorism, decayed infrastructure etc we must not compound the woes of the country again.”
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