AYO ESAN
PRESIDENTIAL Candidate of the National Conscience Party in the 2019 general elections, Martin Onovo, has insisted that for equity and justice, the South East should be allowed to produce the President in 2023.
He said though he would always advocate that the President should be nominated on merit, he would also insist that the consideration of merit should be based on rotation.
He said this just as he stressed that no one was sure whether there would be 2023 election in Nigeria, considering the state of insecurity and other divisive trends going on currently in the country.
Onovo, who spoke in a chat with THE POINT, however, noted that any argument against rotation was deceitful.
He said, “Yes, the Nigerian presidency should be on merit. I also stand on merit and that merit should be based on rotation. Every Local Government in Nigeria has a suitable presidential material. I’m not the first person to say this. Late Alhaji Balarabe Musa said so. He said you can find an excellent presidential material in all 774 Local Government Areas of Nigeria and you don’t also change the rule in the middle of a game.
“Nigeria is a heterogenous society, and based on that, the overwhelming majority accepts rotation. Any argument against rotation is deceitful. Governor Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna State has declared that it is the turn of the South in 2023 and that this has already been agreed to in APC and that anybody who says otherwise is being dishonest.”
“Rotation is a Nigerian thing. It is very patriotic, and it is in the best interest of the country. If there would ever be any 2023, it should be the turn of the South-East. For equity and justice, it should be the turn of the South-East,” he stressed.
Onovo, however, added that he had his fear for Nigeria, based on current happenings.
He said, “Look at what happened in Niger State a few weeks ago, where vehicles that were carrying foodstuffs to the South were being turned back, and Nigerian security forces were looking the other way. Are you not aware that the Nigerian military used helicopter gunship to cause mayhem in Orlu?
“There are so many things happening that nobody knows whether there will be 2023 or not. So I’m not willing to talk further about 2023 because it is only a living man that can talk about 2023.”
He also urged the Federal Government to watch out for Islamic scholar, Sheikh Ahmad Gumi, on his recent call for amnesty for bandits.
“Gumi is a man that should be watched. It is not only amnesty he called for. He was also quoted as saying in one Hausa newspaper that Boko Haram is a blessing to Nigerian muslims. If you also watched the video of his meeting with bandits, you would see where he told the bandits that it was not the Muslim soldiers that were shooting at them but Christian soldiers,” he said.
“Have they not already divided the Army? But they will now be telling us that the opposition is trying to divide the Army. Is Gumi not inciting the bandits against Christians by claiming that it is Christian soldiers that are shooting at them?” Onovo asked.
