Former Federal Commissioner for Information and South-South Leader, Chief Edwin Clark, has said that President Muhammadu Buhari’s successor should come from the South East geo-political zone of the country.
Clark insisted that individuals from Igbo speaking communities of Oshimili South and North, Aniocha, Agbor or Ukwani of Delta state should come out for presidency, but join the South East to achieve it come 2023.
Speaking on Sunday at his Asokoro residence in Abuja when he received the leadership of Ohaneze Ndigbo and some South East leaders led by the President General, Professor George Obiazor, the Elderstateman said the time has come for the South East region to produce the President of Nigeria and 2023.
The Ijaw leader who is the National Leader of the Pan Niger Delta Forum, PANDEF, called for synergy, sacrifice among the people. He said the struggle may not be easy, but the region must reach out to other geo- Political Zones of the country in order to woo and engage them.
“The era we have reached now is that we have agreed to work together, how do we go on, how do we move on? I think that is the stage we have reached.
“I don’t belong to any political party, but I speak my mind. The man who brought politics into Nigeria was late Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe, I knew him when I was I was 20 years when he visited Warri, we trekked 12 miles to see him. Some of the problems we are having today in Delta was as a result of the support for Azikiwe and without that, we would not have gotten Midwest region that later became Bendel State and now Edo and Delta States. We are together, we are one.
“We are supporting the South East region. Anybody from Midwest, Oshimili South and North, Aniocha South and North, Ika, Agbor or Ukwani, if you say I am ready to be the President of Nigeria because I speak Igbo, that is punishable because when you do something that people don’t like, it abominable.
“I have said it, all the Igbos in Anioma, Rivers, in Delta, where ever they are, this is the time for Igbo, South East President. We have the same problem, when we went to the 2014 National Conference, we said that the South East has five states, they should be given additional states so that everyone will have same states like in other zones if that will stable Nigeria, create them.
“Let me advice, if you must fight a war or fight for anything at all, we must put our house in order. What do we do with other voices that are not in tandem with our voices? We must find a way to see what can be done, they have own point, but at the same time, they should also listen to us,” Clark advised.
