They have failed to meet up with the expectations of our people, and have continued to betray our trust, confidence, and respect for them.
The Arewa Concerned Civil Society Organisations of Nigeria has said that in the interest of fairness and equity, the Presidency in 2023 should go to the South-East region since the North had turned into a human abattoir under the incumbent administration.
The ACCSON frowned at a statement purportedly credited to one Alhaji Yerima Shettima, President of Arewa Consultative Youth Forum, saying that “It is too late for the 2023 Presidency to be zoned to the South-East”.
In its own statement signed by Abdulsalam Mohammed Kazeem, ACCSON said, “It is indecorous and even outright provocative and inciting in nature. We strongly believe that no genuine democrat with sincere national interest and who cherishes the spirit of unity and corporate existence of Nigeria will utter such insensitive comments at this critical political time in our country.
“It is noteworthy to restate here, that the position of our group calling for the rotational presidency among the six geo political zones of the country was as a result of our peculiar regional experiences. Both past and present crop of elected and appointed leaders from within our region have failed us completely. They have failed to meet up with the expectations of our people, and have continued to betray our trust, confidence, and respect for them.
“For instance, from 1999 to date (which is 22 years now), the North-West and North-East zones have produced president, vice president, secretary to the government of the federation, senate presidents, and speakers of the House of Representatives. The North-Central Zone alone has produced two senate presidents in 12 years; a deputy senate president and a deputy speaker of the House of Representatives.
“Our three zones of the Northern region in total have produced more ministers, services chiefs and heads of governments agencies more than any other region, yet there is nothing on ground to show for it.
“They only leverage on our population advantage, which though is an added advantage in a democratic setting. The said population is only useful to our region during electioneering period. The major benefit of a population advantage in economics is that it remains attractive to both the multi- national and trans-national companies that would want to site industries in such location in other to maximise their market and get very cheap labour.
“Our Northern region today has been reduced to a human abattoir, to say the least, where all our communities have been converted to a mass grave due to the failure of government at all levels.
“For instance, between October 2021 till date, over 150 citizens of Northern extraction have been murdered by terrorists in Sokoto State alone, not to talk of Zamfara, Kebbi, Kaduna, Katsina, Niger, Benue, Borno and Yobe states. Despite the claims by government that terrorism and violent insurgency is aggressively being fought, the North has remained a killing field.
“Our country is about the highest importer of arms and ammunition in Africa and our region is seemingly the poverty capital of Nigeria, yet our people occupied and are still occupying the most sensitive positions in government from 1999 till date.
“We are not sycophants of government, but we are patriotic northerners too, with history of respect for constituted authority and for our elders.
“It is therefore the position of our Northern umbrella youths coalition, the Arewa Concerned Civil Society Organisations of Nigeria, that since our people in leadership positions in Nigeria cannot bring development, peace, progress, and prosperity to our region, let us try people of other regions, particularly the region or geo-political zone that has not produced a president or vice president of Nigeria in other to further promote fairness, equity, unity or oneness of the country.”
