A former Presidential candidate of the National Action Council (NAC), Dr Olapade Agoro,has asked the Northern leaders to concede the 2023 presidential slot for the Southern politicians, especially the former Lagos state governor, Bola Tinubu.
Dr Agoro who stated this in Ibadan while speaking with journalists specifically urged the Northern leaders to endose the 2023 Presidential ambition of the All Progressives Congress (APC) national leader, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu.
The former presidential candidate said the time has come for the Northern leaders to forget about retaining power in the zone beyond 2023 but allow fairness and fair play .
Speaking further, Agoro disclosed that “it is wrong for political associates of Alhaji Atiku Abubarka to roll out the drums once again, calling on the former Vice President to run in 2023.
He said Asiwaju Tinubu, “is known to be an arch – supporter of northern Presidential candidates right from 2007” and that 2023 should be a pay back time to support given by Tinubu to Atiku in 2007, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu in 2011, and incumbent President Muhammadu Buhari in 2015 and 2019.
According to Dr Agoro, without the inputs of Asiwaju Tinubu “who used his resources, influence and political sagacity, it would have been difficult for President Buhari to win the 2015 Presidential election.”
Agoro added that it will be morally wrong for the north to agitate for the 2023 Presidency, owing to the fact that “the just concluded 2019 Presidential election was wrongly tilted in favour of the northern part of Nigeria that presented Buhari and Atiku, the two popular candidates for the election.
“It became obvious that the 2019 election was meant to serve the interest of the North. The management of the election by INEC was also one – eyed looking wrongly in favour of the north. Otherwise, how do we explain that the two popular candidates from the north polled about 40 million votes, leaving other 69 candidates with less than one million votes?”
He also cautioned that care must be taken this time around to ensure fairness and fair play, insisting that the South should be allowed to have its own slot, saying, with the agitation for the 2023 Presidency by the Southeast, “the Igbos have started clamouring for their right, which is right.”
