The Oluwo of Iwo, Oba Abdulrosheed Adewale Akanbi has appealed to politicians of Northern extraction to allow the presidency be rotated to the South in 2023.
This is as Oba Akanbi warned that the Yoruba Nation agitators will be vindicated if power is retained in Northern Nigeria.
The monarch who made the call in a statement signed by Alli Ibraheem, his Chief Press Secretary, urged politicians not to tear Nigeria apart but allow Southern candidates to compete among themselves as the conventional power shifting is what is cementing the unity of the nation.
He said, “We’ve capable and credible candidates from Southern Nigeria vying to be president of Nigeria. The conventional power rotation has contributed immensely to cementing the unity of Nigeria. Retaining the power in the North will spur further agitations likely to question the oneness of Nigeria.”
The outspoken monarch who held that his traditional voice doused the tensions created by the Yoruba Nation Agitators appealed to Northern traditional rulers, notable politicians and stakeholders to intervene and shift power to Southern Nigeria.
“I’m a leading Natural Paramount Ruler from the Southern Nigeria dousing tensions of the Yoruba Nation Agitations. My intervention was to ensure a united Nigeria. Then, the Agitators raised many issues for consideration.
“One of them was the conventional power rotation of the presidency. We hoped their voice was noted for consideration. We don’t pray to see such a demonstration again. It can be curbed with political fairness ahead of the 2023 general elections. Politics must not tear the country apart”
While maintaining that a Southern Presidency would be in the interest of fairness, equity and unity, he warned that retaining it in the North will fuel agitations.
“I’m appealing to Northern traditional rulers and stakeholders to consider the Southern presidency in the interest of fairness, equity and unity. President Muhammed Buhari of Northern extraction has almost completed two terms of 8 years. In fairness, power should return to the South.
“Retaining power in the North will fuel Agitations. We hope some of us who quenched the previous protest will not join should the power remain in the North.”
