Africa-Press – Nigeria. A former Senate President, Anyim Pius Anyim, at the weekend urged the Igbo speaking people in Delta and Rivers States to forget about the 2023 presidency, saying the slot is for the core Igbos of the South-East stock.
Anyim, who stated this during the 6th World Igbo Summit held at Gregory University, Uturu, Abia State, said the time has come for the South-East to produce the country’s president.
He insisted that any “political office zoned to the South-East in 2023 does not extend to Igbos from a zone outside the region.”
Anyim said there was a great need for the South-East to “constructively and creatively engage other geo-political zones in the country to make its clamour for an Igbo president in 2023 a reality.”
The ex-Senate president stressed that such engagement would engender confidence and helped to secure the votes of other regions.
He, however, advised the Igbos to work hard in a bid to get the presidency in three years’ time.
Anyim said: “The rotation of prime positions among geopolitical zones has no doubt become a common practice such that, its breach generates political discontent.
“The point to note is that a political benefit accruing to any geo-political zone cannot be satisfied by appointing any person outside of that geopolitical zone irrespective of commonality of language or culture.
“That means any political office zoned to the South-East does not extend to Igbos from a zone outside the South-East political zone.”
Anyim also served as Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) during ex-President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration.
He is a key member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Ebonyi State and South-East as a whole.
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