|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
The Igbo socio-cultural organisation, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, has said Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi State was a student at Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, when the North and South agreed on the rotational presidency in 1998.
Ohanaeze said statesmen, including Dr. Chuba Okadigbo, Alhaji Abubakar Rimi, Dr. Alex Ekwueme, Chief Solomon Lar, Dr. Okwesilieze Nwodo, among others, were at the meeting when the agreement was reached.
Vanguard reported that Governor Bello, who has not hidden his presidential ambition, declared that the rotational presidency was unconstitutional.
He said this at the maiden Annual Governor Yahaya Bello, GYB, seminar for the media, held in Abuja last Friday. Read the story HERE.
Reacting on Monday in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Chief Alex Ogbonnia, Ohanaeze said Bello was still young and, therefore, should follow the resolution of the southern governors who decided that the next President should come from the South.
According to Ohanaeze, “Governor Bello was still a student, studying accountancy at the Ahmadu Bello University, ABU, Zaria, when an agreement was reached between the North and the South with respect to rotational presidency.
“The meeting was held at the National University Commission Conference Centre, Abuja, in 1998. Dr. Chuba Okadigbo spoke on behalf of the South, while Alhaji Abubakar Rimi spoke for the North.
“The likes of Dr. Alex Ekwueme, Chief Solomon Lar, Dr. Okwesilieze Nwodo, etc were at the meeting.
“The Nigerian statesmen examined the merits and demerits of zoning and rotation of power between the composite zones in Nigeria.
“In the end, it was resolved that the presidency be conceded to the South and that it would rotate between the South and the North in the interest of equity, unity and corporate existence of Nigeria.
“The foregoing was the basis for the emergence of presidential candidates of the mainstream political parties from the South-West in1999.
“Since then, the patriotic and peace-loving Nigerians have adhered to the rotation principle such that at the end of Chief Olusegun Obasanjo’s second tenure, President Musa Yar’Adua was elected; Goodluck Jonathan and then President Muhammadu Buhari.”
