Apex Igbo socio-cultural organization, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, on Sunday, threatened a boycott of the 2023 presidential election should the two major political parties, the All Progressives Congress, APC, and the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, refuse to zone their tickets to the Southern region.
This came in reaction to the latest stand of the Arewa Consultative Forum, ACF, and the Northern Elders’ Forum, NEF, who both believe the presidential contest should be thrown open.
But Ohanaeze, through its Secretary-General, Mazi Okechukwu Isiguzoro said in a statement made available, that the abolition of the gentleman agreement on power rotation would come with dire consequences.
He words:
“the Northern Elders’ Forum has opted for absurdity in issues that will strengthen internal democracy in all political parties and in the country.”
He, threatened that “any attempt by northern socio-cultural groups to arm-twist the two major political parties, through their sons who are National Chairmen of both the APC and the PDP, to derail the electoral process, will lead to revolts and boycott of the 2023 presidential election in the South, especially in the East.”
He claimed that the leadership of both political parties were under coercion from northern lobbyists and northern socio-cultural groups “to destroy the trust and confidence that bind Nigerians together through the rotational presidency between the North and the South.”