According to reports, the Northern Elders Forum (NEF) has urged Igbos to back Peter Obi, the Labour Party’s presidential candidate.
According to NEF, the South East’s residents shouldn’t point the finger at anyone if an Igbo man doesn’t win the presidency in 2023 because they failed to back Obi.
Dr. Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, spokesman for the Northern Elders Forum (NEF), said as much yesterday, denying any claims that the region has chosen a candidate for the upcoming presidential election in February 2023.
In response, he encouraged the ruling class to take the initiative and set the agenda rather than just watching politicians run the country as they like.
“We got our fingers burnt in 2015 and that is why we are being careful this time. We are saying that the best candidate should be allowed to win the election.”
According to him, “all the elites in Nigeria are in hostages and captives of politicians but we must remove ourselves from that bondage. So, we will reach out to elite from the other regions and together we will welcome any presidential candidate who says he has solution to Nigeria’s problems. We worry about the South East. We don’t know whether they are in support of Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of Labour Party or not. The nation can see what is happening now and if the South East fails to line up behind Obi, they should not blame anybody.
“If the Igbo believe it is time for them, they should support Obi, reach out to other Nigerians and tell them they are supporting Obi not because he is an Igbo man but because he is the best. We will give our support to the best man who can heal the wounds in the land because actually, everybody in Nigeria is marginalised right now,” he said.
He exhorted the residents of the South-East to make sure that all politicians are permitted to conduct open campaigns there. Additionally, he encouraged President Muhammadu Buhari to make sure that everyone may campaign in a secure environment.
“Nigeria has a future but we must work very hard to secure it. Let the best candidate win and let us accept whoever that wins so that we can begin the process of rebuilding Nigeria.