Abdulrahaman Kawu Sumaila, Former Senior Special Assistant to President Muhammadu Buhari on National Assembly Matters (House of Reps) has said Northern Nigeria cannot be coerced through empty media propaganda to give power to the southern part of the country in 2023.
He stated this while reacting to comments Chris Ngige, Minister of Labour and Productivity made in one of Nigeria’s national dailies that any political party that filed candidate of northern extraction for the 2023 presidential election loss.
Mr Sumaila, a former member of the House of Representatives, said Ngige and his likes should bury their heads in shame for trying to intimidate and blackmail the North on the 2023 presidency.
According to him, the North would only cede power to the Southern part of the country through negotiations, dialogue, consensus and understanding, not rantings in the media.
Daily Trust reports that Powershift has been a major topic in the buildup to the 2o23 general elections.
At separate meetings held on July 5 — in Lagos — and September 16 — in Enugu, the southern governors had said the presidency should be zoned to their region.
However, in a communique signed by Governor Simon Lalong of Plateau and chairman of the Northern Governors’ Forum, the governors said the position of their colleagues in the South is condemnable.
“The Forum observed that some Northern State Governors had earlier expressed views for a power-shift to three geopolitical zones in the South with a view to promoting unity and peace in the nation. Notwithstanding their comments, the Forum unanimously condemns the statement by the Southern Governors Forum that the Presidency must go to the South,” the communique read.
“The statement is quite contradictory with the provision of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (1999) as amended, that the elected President shall: score the majority votes; score at least 25% of the votes cast in 2/3 States of the Federation. In the case of run-up, simple majority wins the election.”
