Igbo Presidency 2023: Analysts Examine Odds

Ahead of the 2023 general elections in Nigeria, there have been permutations on the chances of a Nigerian president of the Igbo extraction. While some pundits posit that it is automatically the turn of the Igbo, others warn that it will not come on a platter of gold, hence Igbos should collectively work towards the goal. Some Igbo leaders, however, argue that not making it automatically the turn of the Igbo when other geo-political zones of the country have had their shares is another way of marginalization. According to those with this view, the Igbo agitation for the Nigerian presidency is germane, considering that the top seat has eluded them since 1966.

Bearing his view on this matter, a former commissioner for information in Imo State, Nze Elvis Agukwe, said the people of the Southeast should embark on massive sensitization, both within themselves and across the nation to get the necessary support to produce the next president of Nigeria. He however warned that failure to grant the slot to the Igbo for the sake of equity, justice and fair play would amount to injustice.

In his words, “We are doing well in mobilising and sensitizing other Nigerians. That is how it should be. But if they refuse, it means we are not needed here. We can’t continue to play a second fiddle again. We have the capacity to be on our own. It is not a sin. If you are rejected, you can’t reject yourself. We find a way to stand alone. It’s not our fault.”

On the calls for Ndigbo to close ranks and produce candidates with national outlook and impeccable track-records, analysts have called on various Igbo socio-political organizations to come under one umbrella, and champion the cause. Those with this opinion bemoan the Igbo nation’s tendencies of splitting when they need to come together, and in the end make their efforts futile. Echoing his view, Nze Kanayo Chukwumezie, pioneer coordinator of All Citizens Action Movement (ACAM), said the Igbo nation should inaugurate a team of impeccable people to look into the right person or persons who would be widely accepted by the generality of Nigerians to vie for the post of presidency. According to him, this committee should be championed by the Ohanaeze.

Quoting him, “The Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide, under the leadership of Chief Nnia Nwodo, should as a matter of urgency liaise with other pan-Igbo groups and announce which organization is mandated to pursue this project of Nigeria’s president of the Igbo extraction. Let us not forget too fast how not being able to agree on one state for creation in the Southeast has contributed immensely toward denying us the sixth Igbo state we fought and clamoured for. Also, let us not keep our beam light only on the popular politicians because the messiah we need may be someone unknown publicly. We should not forget the biblical story of the anointing of David as king.

“We need to ensure that whoever gets there will take Nigeria to a level where people from every ethnic group in the country will feel the positive vibrations, and would wonder why we have been denied leadership of this country all these years. He/she must be someone that has led people from all parts of the country in any capacity in the past, and adjudged to being neutral and non-tribalistic. I have always maintained that while we need to negotiate with other ethnic groups for the 2023 presidency, we should agree among ourselves that if we fail, we must reconsider our membership of this union by clamoring for a roundtable of all ethnic nationalities. Even without saying this, we must imply it and mean it. No bloc belongs to where there is a limit to a position that its members can attain. No one wishes that even to an enemy. It is not healthy. We need a union where everyone and every component should be happy and treated fairly and justly.”

On his part, a former national chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Dr Okwesilieze Nwodo, insists that the only way to treat the alleged marginalisation of the Igbo in the country is to support the Southeast’s bid to realise its presidential ambition. Nwodo told the Guardian that, “We are not at war with the federal government. All we want is a federal government that listens to the people. If they do something right, we will support them. They have completed the [Akanu Ibiam International] airport, and that is something they have done right. We congratulate them. However, to say that this will solve the marginalisation of the Southeast is a drop in the ocean of marginalisation of 50 years. We expect more, and the final thing that will bring healing to Ndigbo and the rest of Nigeria is a president of the Igbo extraction and restructuring of Nigeria. These two cannot be compromised.

“We have shown that we are true patriots and voted anybody that in our view enjoys the support of the rest of the country in elections. Since we want unity that can endure, let this integral part be allowed to hold power like every other zone.”

Adding his view, a public affairs analyst and head of media, Enugu South Local Government Area of Enugu State, Sammie Echi Agbo, said, “Ndigbo with their social-cultural and political groups should start a nationwide consultation with other regions in Nigeria to seek their support. We are everywhere, and we better use such widespread networks to reach out to others. We should also avoid extreme tendencies in this quest because it calls for understanding.”

A literary scholar, Professor Al-Bishak, had in an exclusive interview with THE WHISTLER in Lafia, stated that political naivety might become the albatross for Igbo’s quest for producing a Nigerian president. According to him, “The major factor that will militate against Ndigbo is political naivety. The Igbo are quite an industrious people, highly intelligent and sociable. Sadly they don’t know how to bring to bear these natural advantages of theirs into politics. Politics is about negotiation and adopting the principles of give-and-take. The Igbo play politics that suits them, not their partners. They are single-minded, and want to do things their own way. Unfortunately, they don’t have the numbers to win elections at the national level. So they have to work their way in such a manner that they win the confidence and support of other sections of the country. That way they will use their numbers and join with those of other sections to get majority votes that will make them clinch the presidency.”