From Geoffrey Anyanwu, Jude Chinedu and Abasianam Philip, Enugu
Igbo leaders, yesterday, restated their demand for the South East to produce the president of Nigeria in 2023.
They spoke at an enlarged meeting in Enugu organised by Ahamefuna Socio-cultural Organisation.
The leaders made a strong demand on political parties, especially the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), to zone their presidential tickets to the South East.They said the zone had the candidates with the capacity, patriotism and passion to govern Nigeria.
The event chaired by Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu had an array of Igbo leaders, including the Obi of Onitsha, Igwe Alfred Achebe, Prof. Anya O. Anya, Senator Ben Obi, Prof. Uche Azikiwe, Mrs. Beatrice Ekwueme and Dr Okwesilieze Nwodo.
Others were Chief Achike Udenwa, Prof. ABC Nwosu, Chief Dubem Onyia, Senator Az Agboti, Prof. Onyenji, Prof. Uzodinma Nwala, Chief Onyema Ugochukwu, Maj. Gen. Collins Ihekire (retd), Maj. Gen. Godwin Ugwuoke (retd), Dr. Joe Nworgu and Chief Onyemauche Nnamani.
In an 11-point communiqué, the leaders said their demand was predicated on the fact that the zone had not produced a president in Nigeria, except for only six months, adding that “It has also not produced an elected Prime Minister or President since Nigerian Independence in 1960.
“The South East has suffered monumental marginalisation of the zone since after the civil war. This marginalisation has reached new levels in the last seven years. What can Ndigbo do?
“The South East leaders noted that Nigeria has a zoning and rotational culture for the presidency of Nigeria. This agreement on rotational presidency was reached at the 1995 Constitutional Conference. That rotation favours Southern Nigeria at the end of Gen. Muhammadu Buhari’s tenure in 2023. When that presidency rotates to southern Nigeria, the zone that most deserves it is the South East, as other zones have occupied the seat before.”
The Igbo leaders said a president from the South East would usher in unity, peace and progress in Nigeria and guarantee the cessation of agitation by youths for the breakup of the country.
They charged citizens of the zone across all parties to work in unity to achieve the objective of a South East presidency in 2023.
Iwuanyanwu recalled all the efforts and contributions of Ndigbo and their sacrifices for the unity of Nigeria and called on other Nigerians to obey and honour the unwritten agreement on the rotation of the presidency.
Senator Ben Obi said the main aim of presenting the South East case, was to passionately appeal to Nigerian citizens, to support their quest to produce the next Nigerian President in 2023.