WorldStage Newsonline– Director-General of Voice of Nigeria (VON) Osita Okechukwu, has faulted the statement credited to the ex-president, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo at Nnewi during the weekend, that it is dangerous for Ndigbo to take All Progressives Congress (APC) government serious over the promise of 2023 Nigeria president of Igbo extraction.
Okechukwu who spoke to journalists in Enugu on Sunday countered that Obasanjo should give Ndigbo a break for 2023 is the turn of Ndigbo.
The VON DG said, “Let me thank our elder statesman, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo first most importantly for urging Nigerians to give Ndigbo a chance and for recognising the fact that out of the three major ethnic nationalities only Ndigbo had not occupied Aso Presidential Villa.
“This being the case, he should give us a break, 2023 is our turn to produce a president, for equity, natural justice and good conscience hinted by Obasanjo is to our advantage.”
According to him, “The only reinforcement Ndigbo need to compliment this immeasurable equity, natural justice and good conscience is to vote for President Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR. Voting for Buhari will elicit support from his cult followership. Buhari I know will not embark on 3rd Term like Obasanjo. The truism is that Buhari’s remaining 4 years post-2019, is cast in constitutional stone; unlike Atiku’s own which is at best a pledge, hence creates fluid 8 years for Obi and by extension Ndigbo.”
“If Obasanjo so loved Peter Obi, how come he used kangaroo tactics to chase him out of office as governor and burnt down Anambra State Government House? How come he didn’t handpick Obi to be Vice President in 2007, after embarking on the 3rd Term wild goose chase, when he hurriedly settled for Goodluck Jonathan. He should give us a break and not distract us”, he added.
On the impression that Buhari doesn’t like Ndigbo, Okechukwu retorted, “it is an erroneous impression, stoked by ethnic merchants and vile propagandists. Please, remember that Buhari chose two of our brothers, as vice presidential candidates, Rt. Hons Chuba Okadigbo and Edwin Umezoke in 2003 and 2007 respectively. And if Ndigbo had voted for him in any of the two elections, he could have won; for Buhari has a treasured Vote-Bank of 10-12 million votes, reflected in all his presidential elections – 2003, 2007, 2011, 2015.”
“Let’s not allow our Yoruba brothers to beat Ndigbo to it again, this I suspect Obasanjo’s distraction is meant to achieve. Especially when we remember that the Yorubas brought to the table the critical votes which supplemented Buhari’s Vote-Bank”, he concluded.
Meanwhile, the leaders of the Southeast Zonal caucus of the APC on Sunday met in Uburu the country home of the Minister of Science and Technology, Dr Ogbonnaya Onu, with a view to re-strategising for the re-election of President Muhammad Buhari in 2019,
Speaking at the meeting, the Convener, Dr Onu (Leader of the caucus) urged the people of the Southeast to work assiduously to make sure President Buhari get more votes in the forthcoming general elections.
Dr Onu further said, “We should understand that our votes in the Southeast and support for President Buhari will to an extent determine how fat we can realize our clamour for a Nigerian President of Igbo extraction. I am optimistic that APC will secure more votes than it did in 2015”, he added.
His words: “Our President, Buhari, has done creditably in the Southeast and other parts of the country even more than what the PDP administration did in 16 years. I can remember when you ply Enugu/PortHarcourt Express before, you see a part of the road used for farming. Today, it is no more there.
“The second Niger bridge is no longer on the pipeline, The project has become a reality. This administration with less revenue has done well. President Buhari means well to Ndigbo and Nigeria in general. He needs our support for him to consolidate on the developmental projects he has embarked upon. We, Ndigbo should not repeat the mistake of 2015 by putting all our eggs in one basket. It is regrettable that only Igbo nation out of the six geopolitical zones that have not produced Nigeria executive president”
