The Oluwo of Iwoland, Oba AbdurRosheed Akanbi has declared that he would be forced to join Yoruba nation agitators with other monarchs in the South West if a southerner is not allowed to become President in 2023.
In a statement signed by his Press Secretary, Alli Ibraheem which was obtained by Africa Today News, New York the monarch declared that every agitator for the Yoruba nation will be vindicated if power is retained in Northern Nigeria as currently being muted.
He went on to stress that the Southern candidates should be allowed to compete among themselves, saying that the conventional power shifting is cementing the unity of the nation.
The monarch who also appealed to Northern traditional rulers, notable politicians and stakeholders, to intervene and support the power shift in Southern Nigeria, recalled how his traditional voice doused the tension of the agitators.
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He went on to posit that ahead of the 2023 elections, Southern candidates are very much credible and capable to lead Nigeria, insisting that there is no justification for denying them power for the unity of the country.
‘We have a capable and credible candidate from Southern Nigeria vying to be president of Nigeria. The conventional power rotation has contributed immensely to cementing the unity of Nigeria. Retaining the power in the North will spur further agitations likely to question the oneness of Nigeria.
‘I’m a leading natural paramount ruler from Southern Nigeria dousing tensions of the Yoruba nation agitators. My intervention was to ensure a united Nigeria. Then, the agitators raised many issues for consideration. One of them was the conventional power rotation of the presidency. We hoped their voice was noted for consideration. We don’t pray to see such a demonstration again. It can be curbed with political fairness ahead of the 2023 general elections. Politics must not tear the country apart.
‘I’m appealing to Northern traditional rulers and stakeholders to consider the Southern presidency in the interest of fairness, equity, and unity. President Muhammadu the return Buhari of Northern extraction has almost completed two terms of years. In fairness, power should return to the South.
‘Retaining power the in the North will fuel Agitations. We hope some of us who quenched the previous protest will not join should the power remains in the North,’ he stated.
Africa Today News, New York reports that many political actors in the country have called for a power shift to the South ahead of the 2023 election.