**”Says it’s the only unifying point for Nigerians
As the 2023 general election draws nearer, a Coalition of civil society groups on power rotation to the south by 2023 have asked major political parties to use the zoning formular to ensure the country remains united as one entity.
They appealed for the Northern part of the country to remember that they have been holding power in the last seven years as they urged them to allow the south to have their chance.
Addressing a press conference in Abuja at the NUJ press Center the president of the coalition Bassey Etuk Williams said while they know power is not given on a platter of gold however he said they will deploy their structures across the country and within the various parties to further project the call for power rotation to save the country.
“Northern region has been in power since 2015 and after exhausting the constitutional Eight Years by 2023, it is expected that power will rotate to the South. This is lawful and can guarantee peace and unity of the country.
“Rising from our expanded National Executive meeting, we resolved to get involved and join in the call for power shift to the South come 2023.
“Let it be known that, there won’t be either APC or PDP if there is no country called Nigeria. “National interest must override personal interest as many are pushing parties to jettison the conventional rotation agenda of Presidency. Both parties must and should follow what will retain the unity of the country and zone presidency to southern states come 2023.”
According to Williams, the country is overwhelmed with myriads of problems ranging from insecurity, banditry, terrorism, decayed infrastructure hence we must not compound the woes of the country again.
He said, they have been involved in mobilizing young Nigerians to collect their PVC’s in preparation for the forth coming election.
He said they have watched with keen interest various agitations across the zones of the federating units, adding that they have come up with agenda of championing and clamoring for Power shift to the South come 2023.
“There is no doubt that the North has had its fair share of the country leadership and now it is time to zone the Presidency to the Southern part of Nigeria which is our own opinion deserves it.
“Since return to civil rule in 1999, there has been an unwritten convention in the country for power rotation between the North and South.
“It baffles us that as the debate intensifies, most of those involved don’t know what is generally at stake especially as it relates to unity of the country. We have witnessed sharp division along religion line ahead of 2023 general election. “The current security situation and supremacy of a region is also affecting and shaking the unity bedrock of the nation.
He said it is a point of concern that Political gladiators across the divide have taken up arms and are fighting via exchange of words on power rotation.
“Some want it to remain in the North, while others want it back to the South for equality sake.
“Presidential election in Nigeria is highly influential and powerful as we all confers greatest sense of belonging to the federation on any ethnic or geopolitical zone that produces the President. “This no doubt has deepened the agitation for power shift by various regions and we thus resolve to implore all political parties to look in the direction power rotation to the South this time around.”