The Punch
The pan-northern socio-political organisation, the Arewa Consultative Forum, on Wednesday, came hard on Ondo State Governor and Chairman of the Southern Governors’ Forum, Rotimi Akeredolu (SAN), for declaring that any political party that fielded a northern candidate in the 2023 presidential election would lose.
The group argued that the governor, being a senior legal practitioner, should know better when it comes to electing anyone to occupy the nation’s coveted seat.
The governor, while receiving members of a group, the Power Rotation Movement, led by the Chairman, Pogu Bitrus, who also doubles as the Chairman, Middle Belt Forum, said the 17 governors in the southern part of the country were determined to ensure that the next President comes from the South.
However, the ACF, through its National Publicity Secretary, Emmanuel Yawe, drew the attention of the governor to the constitutional provisions for the emergence of a president in the country.
The ACF’s spokesman in an interview with The PUNCH in Kaduna said, “Governor Rotimi Akeredolu (SAN) should know that any presidential candidate, who intends to win the seat, needs votes from 24 states and not 17 (South) and 19 (North). That is what the constitution says.
“As a very senior lawyer, Governor Akeredolu should know the provisions of the constitution. It is, therefore, not possible for a group of states to come together and say we must produce the president. Anybody eyeing that seat must traverse the country, the North and the South to meet the demands of the constitution.”
Also, a former Secretary-General of the ACF, Anthony Sani, reminded the governor that no zone could produce the nation’s president on its own.
