IPOB violent agitations will mar South-East’s quest for presidency in 2023, Says PDP chieftain, Galadima

A Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chieftain, Buba Galadima, said on Monday the activities of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) would hinder the South-East chances of producing the country’s President in 2023.

Galadima, who stated this in a chat with journalists in Abuja, said the people of South-East cannot take the presidency by force, but through negotiation and dialogue.

The politician dumped the All Progressives Congress (APC) for the PDP ahead of the 2019 election.

He later emerged as one of the key members of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar campaign council for the election.

Atiku was the PDP presidential candidate in the 2019 election.

Galadima said he would only support a President of Igbo extraction who would accommodate all Nigerians.

He said: “The other day, former Anambra State governor, Chukwuemeka Ezeife, came to me with a group of people and asked me to support Igbo presidency.

“When they finished talking, I told him I will not support Igbo presidency but I will support an Igbo man from the South-East as president of Nigeria if the man is good, large-hearted, and better than Muhammadu Buhari who we promoted to be President but he shifted the ladder when he got to the top.

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“When you say Igbo presidency, it is suggestive that he will only be the President of Igbo and not the President of Nigerians.

“So, I told Ezeife, no, and I told him that all these agitations and the activities of IPOB are counter-productive to an Igbo man becoming President of Nigeria because the thought is, are we voting for an Igbo man to dismember Nigeria with Biafra, or are we voting for an Igbo man to keep Nigeria one?

“This is a big issue. We are not voting an Igbo man to be President of Biafra but to be the President of Nigeria. But how can that be with these violent agitations?

“The northerners will not take it, Yoruba people will not take it, because it’s like they are conquered in war.

“When I finished with Ezeife and his group, I have not heard of somebody promoting Igbo presidency which means Ezeife had heard my warning and he must have told others. This is not by using force.”

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