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GOVERNOR of Imo State, Senator Hope Uzodimma, has urged the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, and the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, to cede their 2023 presidential tickets to the South-East to ensure justice and equity in the country.
Uzodimma, who noted that the country took a similar step in 1999 to assuage the South-West, which was aggrieved over the June 12, 1993 annulled presidential poll won by late Chief MKO Abiola, said the South-East is in a similar state now and many Nigerians know.
The governor spoke to some journalists in Lagos, on Monday, a day after receiving The Sun Newspapers 2021 Governor of the year award.
Asked his take on the clamour for zoning of the presidency to the South-East in 2023, the governor said: “We practise partisan democracy in Nigeria, and you get to power through political parties.
“As of now, no party has selected its presidential candidate. What is utmost in the mind of every political party is to win election.
“No party will throw the opportunity away. The South-East needs the presidency but we can’t do it alone. We need the support of other zones.
“In 1999, the two political parties, the PDP, and All Peoples Party/Alliance for Democracy APP/AD through internal mechanism chose their candidates from the South-West so that head or tail the winner of the presidential election would come from the South-West.
“It was done to assuage the zone.
“The situation is repeating itself and many Nigerians are in support of the presidency going to the South-East.
“Let the two major political parties — APC and PDP — pick their candidates from the South-East so that justice will be seen to have been done.”
