A former governor of Abia State and the Chief Whip of the Nigerian Senate, Senator Orji Uzor Kalu, has expressed his disappointment at the number of presidential aspirants from South West and the South-South geo-political zones of the country, even after their zones have produced vice presidents and presidents.
He argued that equity and justice demand that they should be supporting the South East for the presidency and that these aspirants do not have any respect and concern for the south east.
In a statement titled “2023 Presidency: The fairness I know”; Senator Kalu stated that although he wants to contest, he would not do so except his party, the All Progressives Party, APC, zones its presidential ticket to the South East. Otherwise, he will seek re-election to the Senate, as the reality is that the North is more advantaged to win elections in this democratic setting.
According to him, as political parties are on the verge of picking their candidates, the right thing to do is for the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, and the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, to zone their presidential tickets to the South East, which remains the only zone in the South that has not produced the president and vice president since 1999.
Senator Kalu emphasized that without the support of other regions, it would amount to what he described as “shadow chase” for a South Easterner to become the president of Nigeria.
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He noted that the two regions in the country that are yet to produce a President are the South East and North East, and if this means anything to Nigerians, the two dominant parties in the country, the All Progressives Congress, APC, and the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, should be fair enough to prioritize these regions.
He stressed that if power should come to the South and not the South East; or to the North and not the North East, then the essence for which the six geopolitical zones were created is dead.
