Southern, Middle Belt leaders didn’t press for zoning of presidency to South-East – Gov Okowa

The Delta State Governor, Ifeanyi Okowa, on Thursday defended his acceptance of nomination as running mate to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar.

The Pan Delta Forum (PANDEF) had last week accused the governor of betrayal for accepting to run a joint ticket with the former Vice President despite spearheading the Southern governors’ push for zoning of the presidency to the region last year.

Okowa, who featured in a Channels Television programme, Politics Today, said he aligned himself with the PDP’s decision to throw its presidential race open for all zones in the country to test their strength in the primary election.

He stressed that while the leaders of the Southern and Middle Belt Forum (SMBLF) were pushing for the zoning of the presidency to the Southern part of Nigeria, they did not specify whether it should be situated in the South-East.

Okowa, however, insisted that the North-East and South-East have legitimate claims for the presidency.

READ ALSO: Atiku reveals Okowa’s value to PDP’s 2023 presidential team

The governor said: “We are in a democratic process. And in the process, it’s not just enough to be able to push for something. As you push, you continue to do so. It may not come that time. It stays on the table and will obviously come at a particular point in time. Both the North- East and South- East feel they are entitled to the presidency, and both were right.

“If when we were talking about the issue of the presidency, PANDEF, Afenifere, Ohaneze Ndigbo and others had collectively insisted that the presidency be zoned to the South-East, it would have gone there. The real truth is they were just asking for a Southern presidency without trying to situate it where ordinarily it should be.

“People had opinions and the tendencies were different based on the lines of argument. As it’s today, both regions have continued to lay claims. As we move forward and the Igbo continue to make requests, the time for the Igbo presidency will eventually come.”

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