By Joy Odor
The former National Secretary of the defunct Alliance for Democracy (AD), Professor Udenta O Udenta has affirmed that the current construct zoning of presidency to the south is fraudulent, mischievous, duplicitous and conceal the issue of South East marginalization through the creation of falsely structure binary between the North and South.
Professor Udenta who is also a Scholar made the affirmation during a media interactive forum why he is aiding and supporting Governor Bala Mohammed for presidency on Monday at NUJ press center Abuja, added that Power shift from the north to the south is a generic indeterminate shift that did not specify which side the power should go to.
He fumed that the politicians are insincere in their quest for power shift.
“So it’s possible for one zone out of the three in the south to perpetually grab the presidency and hold it firm to themselves alone to the exclusion of the other two and then hide under this false narrative of equity and justice – the power has shifted from the north to the south” he said.
According to him, the elites are confusing the rest of the country about amorphous power shift to the south which may consequent in the south west or south south presidential power grab, saying it is better to have a rear guard action with the like of the Bauchi State Governon, Alhaji Bala Mohammed who is eminently qualified.
“My support for Bala Presidency is a rear guard struggle, among other reasons, against amorphous power shift to the south which may ocassion or pave way for a south west or south south presidential power grab.
“Recalled that on Thursday l accompanied Governor Bala Mohammed of Bauchi State and other Nigerians to visit former President Goodluck Jonathan at his Abuja resident to inform him of his intention to run for the 2023 presidential election.
“Governor Bala made two cogent remarks namely; that he will not contest if Jonathan steps into the ring either in Peoples Democratic Party or any other party and secondly introduced me (Prof Udenta O. Udenta) as the leader of the team that he put together to advise him on this his intended run” he noted..
Prof Udenta who noted that his aiding and supporting Governor Bala Mohammed will attract a lot of attention from the part of the country he hails from, and stressed that his interest for Governor Bala Mohammed was born out of practical necessity or political consideration that is in favour of my people – the Igbo people.
While giving further reasons why he is aligning with Bala Presidency project, Prof Udenta reminded of the doctrine of necessity which he (Governor Bala) championed, remember the integrity group in the senate he led without looking at geography and demography.
“The same way he spoke about ‘don’t profile the Fulani’ which irridentists kicked against the same way most people in the north said oh my God, how can he be the one to put himself up to say you want this thing to go to the southern Vice President because it is important that he should do so. It’s morally imperative that he should do so. That is the kind of man he is. And I bet you he must have run the most inclusive ministry of FCT when he was the Minister. And if you go to Bauchi, as I have gone, his transformation work is astonishing, revolutionary in nature.
“l am not considering these three factors, I am considering the factors as it affects my people. That is, if there is a weak Igbo base in People’s Democratic Party (PDP) that could be overwhelmed by these dubious , fraudulent, indeterminate power shift to the south, it better to have a progressive northerner as part of my own collective bargaining and conversation in the south east.
“Practical necessity in politics is a core requirement for political participation because if you dwell at the world of ideology, philosophy or pure strategy, you may loose sight of the practical reality of the political process.
“I was involved in the struggle for restoration of democracy and de-marginalisation of the eastern Nigeria under the platform of Eastern Mandate Union (EMU). The most ideologically sound on the past thirty years till today, of any platform ever established. The de-marginaling and mainstreaming the south east structurally and institutionally and suffered five to six detentions for that – is a practical involvement.
“How do I mainstream the Igbo? It’s through political practice. Journey towards Bala Presidency is part of that reconciliation and overcoming contradictions.
“The second thing; worth noting in this interaction is that, being the founding secretary for Alliance for Democracy in 1998 and secretary of the AD/APP Alliance, that election was between PDP on one flank and AD/APP on another flank. This is why we have a Falaye and Obasanjo faceoff. And being the secretary of the summit of the two aligning parties – the AD/APP, I am in the a very comfortable position to announce and declare that nobody can talk about this forth republic without me. Quote me, no Nigerian born and alive can discuss the formation principles and historical emergence of this Republic and the forces that shaped it’s direction and trajectory without putting Udenta O. Udenta’s view points, practice and performance into reconciliation.
“Let me explain few myths- Falaye and late uncle Bola Ige squared off at the Royal Hotel in Ibadan and Falaye won and became the AD candidate, the same way Obasanjo defeated Ekwueme and emerged as PDP candidate.
“The rovan selection was a south west selection of the AD. Dr Chukwuemeka Ezeife who is alive, purchased the N1million firm of the Alliance for Democracy to participate in that process and won a strong vote of the south east and south south of the country. The caucuses of the party in the south east and south south he won. And at the expanded meeting of the AD leadership, the National Working Committee (NWC), National Executive Committee (NEC), the caucus of the party, the merchant Board of Trustee – owners of the party met at Cultural Centre opposite UTC to decide between Falaye and Ezeife who will be candidate of the party, our leader who was my father, Arthur Nwankwo actually misfired that day – he knows from his grave that I am not lying. And the south east and south south went up in anger, led by Bassey Ekpo Bassey. We had entire north, south east and south south with us, Ezeife had beaten Olu Falaye right there in that hall. After three, four, five hours of robust conversation, we knew already they will ask Ezeife to step down and he graciously stepped down and raised the hands of Olu Falaye.
“That is the sacrifice of the block for a south west presidential quest. That is a historical record not the urban legend of the rover. I was the secretary of the AD and I have the records in my file. On the side of APP, His Excellency Dr Ogbonnaya Onu who is alive and a serving minister, won the primary of the party at Kaduna, We abandoned him to his fate. He didn’t step down, he didn’t negotiate it away and didn’t sale it. We simply abandoned him and formulated the AD/APP Alliance that produced Falaye and Shinkafi. He got to know about this (call it treachery if you so desire). It was an attempt to have a stable Nigeria, a peaceful Nigeria coming from the crisis of June 12 struggle and the tragic mandate of Abiola. He didn’t alter a word, he didn’t call a conference to disown it. He worked with the party towards it’s electoral fortune even though we didn’t win. That is another high sacrifice of Igbo political leader for the emergence of what became a consensus arrangement between two Yoruba sons.
“So today, when they talk about zoning to the south, so far the construct of zoning to the south is fraudulent, mischievous, duplicitous and full of concealment of two intentions. It’s based on false binary of the north and south as far as these two entities are without subdivisions or structural units in them. So it’s possible for one zone out of the three in the south to perpetually grab the presidency and hold it firm to themselves alone to the exclusion of the other two and then hide under this false narrative of equity and justice – the power has shifted from the north to the south. Power shift from the north to the south is a generic indeterminate shift, it doesn’t specify for me which side the power should go to.
“For me there is no way that Obasanjo 8 years of presidency, Osinbanjo 8 years of Vice Presidency and the sacrifices of Ogbonnaya Onu, Ezeife and Ekwueme and the rest of them should translate into a clear, visible, unambiguous statement about power shift to that part of the South that has not experienced this Presidential power. So the south west of this country stands morally disqualified, whoever is in the south west called by whichever name, is rapacious, in his appetite and insufferably greedy to seek for this office” Prof Udenta lamented.
