A pressure group within the Peoples Democratic Party, (PDP) The Reset Nigeria Group, has kicked against any attempt by the main opposition, PDP to deny the South, a president of Southern extraction.
It promised to mobilize against the party if the party chose to zone its presidential candidate to Northern Nigeria in 2023.
The group called on the Party to allow fairness, equity, and natural justice to prevail by allowing a president of southern extraction to take over from President Muhammadu Buhari in 2023.
Mallam Ibrahim Mustapha, who spoke with newsmen on behalf of the group said, power must be returned to Southern Nigeria in 2023 as it has always been the tradition of the opposition People’s Democratic Party, the PDP to allow equity and Justice to prevail.
The group recalled that in 1999, both the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the defunct Alliance for Democracy (AD) fielded Chief Olusegun Obasanjo and Chief Olu Falae, respectively owing to a consensus among the ruling elite then that power should be returned to the South in 1999, apparently to calm frayed nerves among the Yoruba people who felt that they were shortchanged by the annulment of the 1993 presidential election won by Chief Moshood Kashimawo Abiola.
“The South is not bereft of competent and politically savvy Patriots to govern the country. Why should they be denied the opportunity to produce a president in 2023?”
The group threatened that if the main opposition PDP goes ahead to deny the region a southern candidate in 2023, they’ll mobilize over five million of their members to vote against the party in 2023.
The PDP entrenched the zoning formula, though not in the nation’s constitution for the purpose of equity, fairness, and justice and as such, the current leadership should not truncate the gentleman agreement that the founding fathers entrenched in the party.
“The goal is to move the country forward and no nation thrives where there is no peace, equity, and justice”.
