From Laide Raheem, Abeokuta
A group, Southern Youth Alliance (SOYA), has called on former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, to declare his intention to vie for the president in 2023, declaring that further delay by him would be viewed as an act of cowardice.
The group also threatened to petition Atiku if he fails run for the number one office in the country next year.
President of SOYA, Ismail Ridwan, stated this in Abeokuta, Ogun State, during a press conference organised by the South West arm of SOYA, in support of the former vice president’s ambition.
Ridwan alongside other members were armed with placards with inscriptions such as ‘Age is an advantage for Atiku’; ‘Atiku loves the youth”; ‘PDP is safe with Atiku’; ‘Atiku for President 2023’; ‘Atiku promised the youth 40 % inclusion’ and ‘Nigeria is safe in Atiku’s hand’.
Ridwan said as youths though they had previously canvassed for youths in leadership position, but the contemporary time demanded that more emphasis should be placed on competent leadership.
He said Nigeria was confronted with monumental challenges, including insecurity, poverty and increased debt, arguing: “The country requires a choice of a leader who can speak the truth, mend fences of division and belong to the South and the North.”
He said Atiku possessed the leadership qualities to fix the nation’s challenges and place Nigeria on the right footing, but that they were not comfortable with his silence or reluctance in declaring his intention to contest the presidential election.
“If he does not do so, we will believe he is a coward, we will believe he is scared. We are respectfully making a demand that His Excellency Atiku Abubakar breaks the air about his ambition to run for the 2023 presidential election and make a declaration in the affirmative,” he said.
He also expressed the group’s discomfort over campaign of calumny against Atiku, saying age has nothing to do with leadership.