…..Declares Support for Southern Presidency

By Joel Ajayi

The Pro-Atiku Abubakar Movement across the country in their numbers on Thursday withdrewed their support for the former Vice President Alhaji Abubakar over his 2023 ambition and there heap a huge  support for power to shift to the South.

Coalition of the Civil Society which include;Turaki Arewa Vangaurd for Atiku, South West Development Frontiers for Atiku 2023, Midlebelt Network for Atiku North 4 North and host of others in the world during joint press conference held in Abuja

They were withdrawing their support for the Adamawa Politician Atiku, citing diversity, peace, transiquty and equity and power shift to the south, the need for younger candidates to emerge come 2023.

In his Addressed the Leader/Convener South West  Development Frontiers for Atiku 2023,  Femi Osabinu who read the address of the group to the urges Atiku to give second thoughts to his desire to contest for the office of president in the elections again in 2023.

He expressed that, the demand is not an attempt to malign the character of any individual, but a patriotic call based on the mood and need of the nation at this critical moment in the life of every Nigerians.

According to him, we are gathered here, as patriots and nationalists, having diligently and painstakingly reviewed the contemporary and evolving issues plaguing our country today to put our position clearly on the record for posterity.

“This gathering is comprised of vibrant and dynamic groups, whose strength across board is a firm establishment at the grassroots level, hence we are in a position to present an unbiased representation of the pulse and mood of the nation.

“Nigeria, unlike any other country in Africa that went through colonialism, through a coming together of interests coalesced under the banner of the amalgamation of the northern and southern protectorates to form the current entity. Today, more than at any other time in her history, the country’s unity is under threat by s collection of centripetal forces, a situation which can only be addressed by equitable opportunity at aspiring for the leadership of Nigeria, to give these two regional blocs a sense of belonging to what is today known as the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

“Today, in the face of ongoing insurgencies and separatist movements feeding various sentiments that have left the average Nigerian with low morale and uncertainty over the future of the country, it is only fair that there is a power shift to the southern region.

“There have been several calls to that effect, and we hereby wish to lend our voice to those calls, with It is our considered opinion, with Nigeria’s continued corporate existence as a united country under threat, that it is only fair in the interest of fairness and equity rather than majority rule, for power to return to the southern part of Nigeria.

“We are, by this media briefing, calling on any political party interested in national unity come 2023 to do the needful on this fundamental patriotic call. Having sampled opinions of the everyday Nigerian, across board using different scientific and informal methods, we join our voices and stake our integrity on this demand for power shift to the southern part of Nigeria come 2023.

“We are not unaware that some northerners are aspiring to occupy the office of President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in the coming general elections slated for 2023.”

He added that: “While these aspirations sit in comfortably with the letter of the1999 constitution, they negate the spirit of same constitution which recognizes the principle of federal character in appointments into public office, though it does not expressly bar such persons from aspiring to lead their country.

“In the interest of the spirit in which the 1999 constitution (as amended) was framed, taking into full cognizance the foundations upon which this country was built, power needs to shift to the south to show good faith and help to heal the decades old wounds of the nation, which are getting more pronounced by the day.

“Nigeria needs a young and more energetic unifier, who will be able to handle the rigors of being physically present in crises spots to make the physical and psychological statement of government being in charge and committed to finding lasting solutions to our national challenges.

“Having been around for decades and served at different levels, up to the highest levels of government as a very influential vice president, we believe Abubakar has done his tour of duty in the front row of national affairs. It is now time for him to take a back seat and play the role of elder statesman, the billings of which he has lived up to.

“We are also not unmindful of the fact that Alhaji Abubakar abandoned the party structure of the PDP and his support groups post 2019 elections; a clear betrayal of the trust reposed in him as an encapsulaion of the sum of their legitimate aspirations and hopes for Nigeria.

“We are equally not blind to the optics of Alhaji Abubakar’s preferred public association with members of the topmost echelons of the Nigerian elite, showing he has lost touch with the reality of the suffering masses of Nigeria, who are bitten by the current bugs of the economy and the potential drifting of the political ship of state.

“The time is now, if we must save Nigeria, for a younger candidate to take the saddle and take back our country from a particular set of Nigerians who are in their late seventies and eighties. The time is now for a new thinking to guide Nigeria in the direction that is befitting of a 21st century society, as the giant of Africa and Africa’s largest economy, to play a leadership role in African affairs and in the comity of nations as a whole.

“Our members, in their numbers across the country, are on standby in the various political parties and consulting from outside of the parties to ensure that south eastern presidency is achieved in 2023.

‘We believe that Nigeria must get it right and those who have most benefitted from Nigeria must pay back by putting national interest above personal ambition.

“The era of individuals holding god-complex in projecting the belief that they have all the answers to the problems of 200million people spread across over 300 ethnic groups is over.”