2007: S/East Demand Concession from Parties
From Emmanuel Ugwu in Enugu
Political leaders in the South East geopolitical zone yesterday demanded that all the major political parties in the country should concede their presidencial tickets to the zone in 2007.
The demand formed part of a three-point communique issued by the South East Political Leaders Forum after their meeting in Enugu yesterday.
In the communique read to newsmen by Mr. Chukwu-emeka Nwajiuba, the forum mandated all its members to go and "formally request" their respective parties to zone the presidency to the South East come 2007 or "whenever the next contest for the presidency of Nigeria takes place."
According to the communique the parties that are expected to zone the presidency to the South-east include the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alliance for Democracy (AD), All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) and All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP).
The forum chaired by former Speaker of the House of Representatives in the Second republic, Chief Edwin Ume-Ezeoke, said its members were poised 'to work assiduously for the actualisation" of the Igbo presidency project come 2007.
It also underlined the need for electoral reforms to be carried out without delay for the overall political equity in the country.
"We insist on the urgent and comprehensive electoral reforms as part of ultimate national restructuring through the agency of the convocation of a national conference," the politcal leaders said.
Throwing more light on the decisions of the forum, Ume-Ezeoke said the request for the parties to zone their presidential tickets to the South East has become imperative now because "this is the zoning period" for 2007.
He described the forum as the "authentic" forum of the political leaders of the South East and added that it would harmonise all the platforms for the actualisation of the Igbo presidency project to avoid duplication of efforts.
He explained that the business of screening presidential aspirants from the zone would come up after the parties had zoned the ticket to the South-east and candidates emerged from the various parties.
According to him, the formal request for the zoning to be made in favour of the South East would indicate the seriousness attached to the aspiration of Ndigbo to produce the next president for Nigeria.
However, he acknowledged that the South East would not be able to go it alone hence "we will visit all the other zones of the country to get their support"
The meeting was attended by 34 political leaders including the APGA National Chairman, Chief Chekwas Okorie, while former Senate President Anyim Pius Anyim, Chief Chukwuemeka Ezeife, Chief Jim Nwobodo and other notable politicians sent solidarity messages.
The agitation over the zoning of the presidency has become a major controversy especially between top politicians from the South-east and the North in the PDP.
Some PDP governors from the North insist that the party's zoning formula stated that the presidency should rotate between the North and South, and thus, the slot should move to the North in the next election after being occupied by President Olusegun Obasanjo, a southerner, for eight years.
The South-east governors have argued that the post has not been zoned and therefore should be open to all the seven other geo-political zones in 2007 except the South-west, Obasanjo's zone.
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