Why Public Statements on Aspiration Of South-East To Produce President Of Nigeria in 2023 Must Be Limited To Competent Individuals

Opinion December 9, 2021

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By Dr Chinedu Jideofo-Ogbuagu

We are again embarrassed by a childish statement that can only attract ridicule and derision from those individuals who don’t want the South-East to produce President Buhari’s successor in 2023. One Chuks Ibegbu and others must stop self-defeating narratives that can only undermine our legitimate advocacy.

First, Mr Ibegbu’s call for the South-East to be ‘settled like other regions have been settled’ lacks political maturity and intelligence. Our quest is not about ‘settlement’ and no one must present that childish, wrong and damaging picture. That call opens up the caller to suspicion of ulterior motive for the quest for emergence of President of Nigeria of South-East extraction.

That call is akin to a phone call I once received from a South-Easterner who asked why we wanted a presidential aspirant/candidate who would become President and fight corruption in truth when I should be thinking of a (corrupt) South-Easterner who would steal and plunder like others have done since Independence.

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The quest for the South-East to produce President of Nigeria in 2023 has absolutely nothing to do with “settlement”. It is about vision and fixing Nigeria – about security, peace, unity and prosperity of Nigeria. It is about Nigerians becoming proud of their country and foreigners respecting Nigeria and Nigerians for finally sorting out its leadership question.

It will help if all sorts of people don’t speak publicly on the legitimate aspiration of the South East to produce President of Nigeria on any of the party platforms in 2023.

We are APC and want APC to be that platform; we want South-Easterners in other parties (including PDP) to be doing what we are doing in APC instead of confusing or even deceiving themselves with general and meaningless posturings.

Public statements regarding our presidential aspiration is not for everyone. Intelligence, technical expertise, strategic reasoning and tactical approach are absolutely necessary.

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Few days ago, there was that other embarrassing “kneeling and begging” statement, which caused so much embarrassment to the aspiration that we had to issue a statement to try and reduce the damage done by that statement. We don’t want to spend time and money putting out fires by thoughtless utterances.

Mr Chuks Ibegbu goes by the title of “Special Envoy on Nigeria Presidency of Igbo Extraction”, which itself is unintelligent, confused and dangerous – another fire that must be doused before it ruins our quest. In the context of rotation of the Presidency from geopolitical zone to another, “Igbo extraction” is foolish and meaningless.

Does “Mr Envoy” not know that much of the South-South he says has been “settled” include peoples of Igbo extraction. Are Jonathan and his Ogbia people not of Igbo extraction? Beyond parts of Bayelsa, are parts of Rivers, Akwa Ibom, Cross River, Benue, Kogi, Edo, Delta, etc not of ‘Igbo extraction’?

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Mr Ibegbu must also understand that many individuals not known to be Igbo are of Igbo extraction, and they come from all states of Nigeria. By the time we put him through a term he is ignorant of, he will learn to think critically. But we really must not be diverted, especially as time is short. And we certainly don’t want to be made to say what should not be said, which Mr Ibegbu has today succeeded in doing.

People who are ignorant of certain critical issues must keep their mouths shut and not expose their ignorance; they must stop undermining the quest for emergence of President of Nigeria of South-East extraction with embarrassing and damaging statements.