By Tony Adibe
The former Director-General of Voice of Nigeria (VON), Mr Osita Okechukwu, has harshly criticised the African Democratic Congress (ADC) for elevating personal interest above national cohesion.
Okechukwu, who is a foundation member of the All Progressives Congress (APC), said this in a statement he issued on Thursday in Enugu. He picked holes in the emergence of Alhaji Atiku Abubakar as ADC presidential flag bearer against the current North and South national rotational zoning.
According to him, Atiku’s emergence as the presidential flagbearer of the ADC has once again raised serious concerns over the unforced error of elevating personal ambition above the zoning convention.
According to him, since the advent of the Fourth Republic, zoning rotation at the presidential level had largely guaranteed national cohesion, patriotism, fairness, and a sense of belonging among Nigerians.
Okechukwu said: “It amounts to political opportunism for the ADC to disregard the zoning principle at a time when virtually all major political parties — APC, PDP, LP, NDC — as well as the majority of Nigerians, subscribe to rotational presidency in the overriding national interest.
Atiku
“By its action, the ADC has chosen to return Nigeria to the old and divisive North-versus-South political morass. This made Rt. Hon. Rotimi Amechi to reject the offer of vice president; and as speculated, confirmed ADC as Atiku’s Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV).”
He insisted that Nigeria’s unity remained non-negotiable and that no individual’s political ambition should supersede national cohesion, as nobody can be president in a crisis-ridden country.
The APC Chieftain explained that with Nigeria entangled in palpable insurgency, it is most patriotic that all northern political gladiators except one are patiently waiting for 2031, the Northern turn under the existing rotational understanding.
He said that he hoped that the ADC leadership would not blame the APC and, by extension, President Bola Tinubu, when the majority of Nigerians vote against their unforced error of breaching the zoning convention.
He said: “This is bearing in mind that their 2023 breach of the same principle significantly contributed to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)’s irretrievable and deep internal divisions till date.”
Okechukwu maintained that history would judge ADC leaders not by the intensity of their rhetoric and rationalisation, but by their non-adherence to zoning. He said: “The rotational zoning glue has contributed to national unity, institutional stability, and democratic consolidation.”
