by Although 2023 when President Muhammadu Buhari is expected to finish his second term is still three years away, agitations on which zone power should shift to have been on but former Chief Whip of the Senate, Sir Roland Owie presented a new perspective to the agitation when he said power should remain in the north at least for another four years after 2023 for equity and fairness. Speaking to journalists in his residence, Owie also posited that when power eventually shifts to the south post-2023, it should be ceded to the south-east region of the country.
Owie said his position is hinged on the fact that the south has had more time at the presidency than the north since 1999, a situation he said was occasioned by the death President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua and the decision of President Goodluck Jonathan to contest after he finished the tenure if Yar’Adua against his advice. He said “The problem we have in Nigeria particularly those of us from the southern part is that we are sometimes not realistic and we forget that if we are going to equity, we must go with clean hands.
“Presidency came from South West with Obasanjo even though he lost his unit, he lost his booth, he lost his local government and lost the entire zone but he became President of Nigeria and did eight years even though he was trying to take a third term.
“Today, when you
calculate after Buhari’s tenure expires in 2023, the north will have four
years, 244 days to complete their own quota of the presidency so it is not the
turn of the south yet. “When there is no justice, there can’t be peace. So the
slot for 2023 is for the north and when the thing finishes, the presidency will
come to the south and then should go to South-East.” On why it should then be
South-East, Owie said; “It is the south easterners that are making this country
remain united. Go to every part of the 36 states of the federation, after the
indigenes, the next most populated group are the Igbos. “When presidency comes
back to the south, it should go to south-east, not south-west, not south-south.
“However, the only thing we are going to talk about is that power should now
return to the south after the next four years post 2023 so whichever party is
fielding a candidate in 2023, that candidate must be willing and ready to sign
that he will do four years and then the 244 days can be sorted out through a
doctrine of necessity probably by compensating them with appointments.” Owie
said as far back as 1983, there was already a plan that the presidency should
go to the South-East after the second term of Alhaji Shehu Shagari before
military truncated the second Republic. He said “Our Second Generation Founding
fathers, late Alex Ekweme and co after all the hustle finally agreed on the six
zonal arrangement and the civilian regime started in 1999,
“Quite frankly, I was the Edo State
coordinator for Ekweme ahead of the PDP presidential primaries it was clear
power was going to shift to the East because when Shagari came in 1979 and did
four years and he came in 1983, “It was not negotiable that by the time he
finishes his second term, the presidency will go to the south, and go to the
South East and by all standard, everybody was looking up to late Ekweme that he
will take that slot but unfortunately, the evil carriers, the military came and
truncated that regime in 1984 and so all those plans could not materialise. “A
civilian regime again came in 1999 and it was clear that the thing will start
from the south and for me I supported that it will go to South East but at the
end of the day, my mentor, a man I respect, President Ibrahim Babangida and some
others thought otherwise. “When myself and late Chuba Okadigbo visited Ibrahim
Babangida in the build-up to that election, he made a veil reference about the
presidency going to South West one night and I went back to him for
clarification and he said yes, it has to go to South West. “He said Roland, it
is not my fault, for me, I need to equalise June 12, God knows my heart, the
buck stops at my table, they say June 12 was annulled, I took responsibility
but only God knows what happened; the underneath things that happened, by the
time he told me, I pitied him.”
Source: Vanguard News Nigeria.
