On his part, a former National Chairman of the APC, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, reacted to the President’s comment on power rotation, saying zoning was inevitable in the party.
He stated, “What the President said is what it ought to be. We are building not just a political party but a nation. Politics is all about inclusiveness although some Nigerians choose to call it zoning or rotation, I prefer to call it inclusiveness.
“We must learn to be as inclusive as possible. Every part of a local government, a state or a nation especially as multi-ethnic and multi-religious as Nigeria must build a system where everyone will have a sense of belonging there is no two ways to it. Every part of this great country should be given a sense of belonging in terms of appointive and elective office. Zoning is inevitable.”
The former APC national chairman said this as the opposition Peoples Democratic Party and its presidential candidate in 2019, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, tackled Buhari over his comment that those aspiring to be President should defect to the APC.
The National Publicity Secretary of the party, Kola Ologbondiayan, in a telephone interview with one of our correspondents, in Abuja, said, “Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), does not pretend about his aversion to political contests. This explains why he left the defunct All Nigeria Peoples Party to form the Congress for Progressive Change just to emerge unopposed as presidential candidate.
“Now, as president, he is working very hard to turn Nigeria into a one-party state, this explains why he is leading his party, the All Progressives Congress, into coaxing members of the opposition into joining the APC.
“For us in the PDP, we want the President to be aware that Nigerians are resilient people, they are feeling the heat of his mis-governance and the pain and suffering which the APC represents and are prepared to legitimately resist all forms of threats and intimidation in order to resist the APC and all it represents come 2023.”
Speaking in a similar vein, Media Adviser to Abubakar, Mazi Paul Ibe, said, “The President was trying to sell his party the APC, you cannot blame him. However, the truth remains that he is trying to sell a very bad product. Nigerians don’t want to join a sinking ship. Nigerians know that the PDP is the platform for Nigerians who mean well for their country. We are working hard to rebuild our party.”
Copyright PUNCH.
