…write Buhari, demand zoning of presidency to region
Six presidential aspirants of the All Progressives Congress (APC) have kicked against the shortlisting of only five out of the 21 presidential aspirants of the party by Northern governors for the ongoing presidential primaries.
Already, the South-East presidential hopefuls have written a letter to President Muhammadu Buhari, demanding the zoning of the party’s presidential ticket to their region.
The aggrieved South-East presidential aspirants are Rochas Okorocha, Dave Umahi, Ogbonnaya Onu, Ikeobasi Mokelu, Chukwurmeka Nwajiuba and Uju Ken Ahanenye.
They argued in the letter dated June 6, 2022 that for equity, unity and fairness, the APC should zone the ticket to the South East, which has yet to produce a President for the country.
The letter partly stated, “Your Excellency, we most humbly request that this position of our brothers from the North be deepened and made even more wholesome by further zoning this position to the South-East.
“We are all aware that no President can emerge without the support of various geopolitical zones and without the express collaboration of our brothers and sisters from other zones of Nigeria.
“With our Convention at hand, your kind directive for the deepening of unity in diversity, championed by our founding fathers solely on the basis of strengthening national unity and cohesion and for rousing victory at the 2023 elections, are stated objectives in your speeches to the Progressive governors forum, the APC aspirants dinner and the meeting of APC stakeholders.
“Furthermore, we are humbly requesting that you consider and pick your chosen candidate from the South-East aspirants in line with your stated objectives of handing over to trusted party loyalists.
“We humbly seek your Excellency’s prompt and kind intervention to enable the party delegates assume proper guidance.”