Editorial: North In Disarray Over 2015 Two years to the next general election, the Arewa Consultative Forum and other Northern leaders (?) are falling apart over the re-election of President Goodluck Jonathan. Until the visit of retired General Lawrence Onoja, Senator John Wash Pam and other members of the Arewa Consultative Forum recently, Prof. Ango Abdulahi had been inciting the north against President Goodluck Jonathan, especially his possible re-election in 2015. Unfortunately, the former Vice Chancellor’s agreements were primarily pedestrian- tribal and religious, not that the president is not performing. He argued as if the North alone owned this country and had the right to solely determine who gets what and for how long. However, the position of General Onoja and others that Dr. Goodluck Jonathan must run has now vindicated objective Nigerians who had faulted the claims of Abdulahi, and who believe that he was speaking for himself and not on behalf of the entire north where you have the likes of the Vice President Namadi Sambo and others who are committed to the unity of Nigeria. Predictably, some lone voices from a section of the North are criticizing the visit of the Northern elders and their call on the president to recontest. We can only advise them to subordinate their selfish interest to that of the nation because no one section of Nigeria is bigger than the entire country. Meanwhile, there is no law stopping the president from seeking r-election if he so desires. If the likes of Ango Abdulahi feels so strongly that they must stop the incumbent president from having a second term as allowed in the Constitution, then they should prepare to do so in a lawful manner, in a free and fair election instead of resorting to blackmail and misinformation. Their modus operandi is not and cannot be acceptable to any objective Nigerian, whether from the South or the North as has been demonstrated by the solidarity visit of General Onoja and others who see Nigeria as one. However, so long the likes of Abdulahi continue in their unfruitful journey to deny the president his constitutional right, so long will more northerners rise against them because everyone is entitled to only one vote. That is the beauty of democracy.
Posted on: Tue, 25 Jun 2013 16:09:40 +0000
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