Presidency Should Remain in North after 2023, Says Owie

A former Chief Whip of the Senate, Senator Roland Owie, has stated that power should remain in the northern part of the country at least for another four years after 2023 for equity and fairness.

Speaking to journalists at his residence in Benin City, the senator, who represented Edo South Senatorial district between 1999 and 2003, however, posited that should power shift to the south pole in 2023, it should be ceded to the South-east geo-political zone of the country.

Defending his position, Owie said the south has had more time at the presidency than the north since 1999, a situation he said was occasioned by the death of President Umaru Yar’Adua and the decision of President Goodluck Jonathan to contest after he finished the tenure of Yar’Adua against reasonable advice.

He said: “The problem we have in Nigeria particularly those of us from the southern part is that we are sometime not realistic and we forget that if we are going to equity, we must go with clean hands.

“Presidency came from South-west with President Olusegun Obasanjo even though he lost his polling unit, he lost his polling booth, he lost his local government and lost the entire zone. But he became President of Nigeria and did eight years. Then power shifted to the north and produced Yar’Adua, one of the best presidents Nigeria has ever had. May his soul rest in peace. The man who agreed that his election was flawed, and brought peace to Niger Delta died and the then Vice President Goodluck Jonathan took over.

“You can see the wisdom of Abacha in his constitution that was not used where he made provision for a second Vice President from the zone that produces the president. If we had adopted that constitution, it means when Yar’Adua died, the Vice President from his zone would have taken over and we would not have been where we are today talking about doctrine of necessity.

“When Yar’Adua died and Jonathan took over and finished the remaining years of the tenure and took another four years. If there were no greedy leaders, I remember what I said in our South-south leaders meeting that Jonathan should allow somebody from the north run for the presidency, explaining that age is on his side. I said when it rotates back to the South-south, he can still run but those who felt that they owned PDP, who were not there when PDP was formed lured the man and pushed him to go for a third term.