The imminent absence of the South-East from top leadership
positions in the Senate and House of Representatives is of little bother to
leaders of the region, former
Anambra State governor, Chukwuemeka Ezeife, has
said.
However, radical member of the
Second Republic House of Representatives, Dr. Junaid Mohammed, yesterday, put
the plight of the region to its decision to put all their eggs in one basket,
even as renowned economist, Dr. Pat Utomi, cautioned All Progressives Congress,
APC to ensure that it gives a fair representation to all sections of the
country.
The reactions came as APC, which is
set to take over the Presidency and the National Assembly, denied taking a
decision on the zoning of the top positions of government.
The party’s assertion nonetheless,
there were indications that APC had zoned the office of Senate President to the
North-Central with Senators Bukola Saraki and George Akume as the major
contenders.
Other principal positions in the two
chambers are being contested by the North-East, North-West and South-West. The
South-South, which only has one returning member to the House of
Representatives, is also angling for the office of Deputy Speaker.
The South-East, which has no
returning member of APC in the Senate and the House of Representatives, has
been completely left out of any of the principal officers’ positions.
Ndigbo aren’t worried—Ezeife
Reacting to the development
yesterday, Chief Ezeife, who governed Anambra State between 1992 and 1993 said:
“I do not see anything wrong with what APC had done.
“What the party has done is in line
with their convention. I do not see any reason why people should be worried
about the fate of the Igbo.
“We are not worried. Only those who
do not see us as people of destiny are worried. However, there are lessons to
be learned from the outcome of things. But we are not worried because lessons
have been learned.”
Decisions’ve consequences — Mohammed
In his remarks, Dr Mohammed said the
decision of Ndigbo to put all their eggs in one basket will have
consequences politically.
He said: “I must say I do not have
the privilege of seeing what the incoming government, led by APC, has drafted
in terms of zoning offices.
“However, it is evident that the
Igbo mobilized towards one candidate and I think APC is justified for not
zoning any major office to their zone.
“I am not a believer of zoning, but
with the complicity in Nigerian politics, rotation has been brought to the
forefront and we will continue to battle with this until Nigeria matures
politically.
“It is not just the result of the
last elections that showed that the South-East zone had tilted towards one
candidate, results of previous elections also showed that and they have had it
so good under previous administration.
“They have, therefore, taken it for
granted that they will get things on a platter of gold.
“APC is absolutely justified with
the arrangement of not zoning any major office to the South-East. If they are
given some of the big positions, what will other zones like North-West, who
gave the President-elect big votes, ask for?
“So I think it will be stupid to
give big positions like Senate President or Secretary to the Government to the
South-East zone when the zones that gave bloc votes to the President-elect will
just be watching.”
I expect good representation—Utomi
On his part, Professor Utomi said he
expects APC to ensure equal representation from the geo-political zones even as
he played down comments on the issue as he said the party had not come out with
a categorical policy on the issue.
Pressed further, he said: “What is
favour and what is not favour? I think any political party that wants to govern
effectively would seek effective representation from across the country in the
executive and legislative leadership of that country.”
APC’s assurances
Meanwhile, APC has urged Nigerians
to disregard the wild speculations making the rounds concerning the appointment
of ministers and the zoning of offices under the incoming Buhari
administration.
In a statement in Abuja on Monday by
its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, APC said there was no
truth to anything that had been dished out by the rumour mill concerning the
issues of appointment, especially the zoning of the National Assembly’s
principal positions and other offices.
It said in the true tradition of
APC, all issues of public interest will be handled transparently and conveyed
to Nigerians through the usual communication channels.
The party said: “No appointments
have been made and no offices have been zoned. The main concern of our party at
the moment is to ensure a smooth transition and to hit the ground running in
the overall interest of the long-suffering people of Nigeria.
“At the appropriate time, Nigerians
will be informed of the appointments made and the offices zoned.”
‘An effective govt’s priority’
Also speaking, President,
South-East/South-South Professionals, Mr. Emeka Ugwu-Oju, said merit should be
promoted in the allocation of government positions even as he called for the
immediate implementation of the report of the 2014 National Conference.
He said: “The number one priority of
the peoples of South East/South-South is the implementation of the National
Conference Resolutions as the foundation of the recreation of a new Nigeria
that will be anchored on justice, equity, merit and the Rule of Law.
“That is the main reason they
overwhelmingly voted for Jonathan.
“Majority of them will prefer the
immediate implementation of the National Conference Resolutions in lieu of the
National Assembly positions, because it will benefit more of the people than
just a handful of individuals.
“Any political party that wants to
govern effectively would seek effective representation from across the country
in the executive and legislative leadership positions.”
Ndigbo is not afraid of APC Zoning, says Ezeife , adds '' Ndigbo not worried on being left out'
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on
Tuesday, April 21, 2015
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