The Atiku Diaspora Support Group says former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and PDP presidential candidate in 2023 will garner the highest Igbo vote ever to emerge as the nation’s next president.
Chief Franklin Ekechukwu, the US-based founder of the group and Diaspora Director Atiku Kawai disclosed this in a.statement on Monday in Lagos.
Ekechukwu, also the Director, home-based Build Back Better Nigeria, was reacting to the statement by the apex Igbo socio-political organization, Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide, that Abubakar would never become Nigeria’s president.
Ohanaeze Secretary-General, Mazi Okechukwu Isiguzoro, had said that the Igbo would rise up against Abubakar and that his presidential campaign would be rejected in the South-East.
Reacting, Ekechukwu said Abubakar emergence as the PDP Presidential Candidate was divinely ordained, “and I believe that God will finish what he started with the man Atiku.”.
“The publication attributed to the Apex social-political organization Ohanaeze Ndigbo worldwide that Atiku will never be president of Nigeria is very unfortunate.
“No one is God to make such a blatant careless claim and generalise to a certain group of people.
“We want to assure all that not only will Atiku become the President of Nigeria but Atiku will garner the highest Igbo vote ever come 2023 general election than other election.
“Atiku Abubakar will be the next President of Nigeria, no man can stop a man whose time has come, It is Atiku’s time,” Ekechukwu said.
He urged that media to always separate a person’s opinion from that of a group or tribe.
He advised against any statement that is not only offensive but hateful, tribalistic, myopic and capable of dividing the nation.
He said that all discriminatory and inflammatory statement capable of destroying any future alliances that an Igbo man might have in the future should be avoided.
“It (discriminatory statement) can never foster unity which is what this country badly needs at this time in history.
“This kind of statement is inflammatory, absurd, and outright offensive.
The media should try to learn printing statements that can only foster unity in the nation,” he added.
According to him, in politics alliances must be built and no one or tribe is an island, most especially in a country with over 250 different tribes.
He added: “For an Igbo man to ascend to the position of Presidency, this kind of statement from the Ohanaeze must stop.
“The idea that only Igbo can be president as this time is parochial, there are over 250 different tribes in Nigeria one tribe cannot dictate to other tribes who must be President, democracy is a game of numbers.
“Igbo man must build alliances with the other 250 different tribe to ascend to the position of Presidency, failure to do that can only bring frustrations.”
According to him, Ohanaeze, instead of making enemies for the rest of the Igbo should go back and reengineer their political approach and attitude toward Nigeria to be relevant in Nigerian politics.
“With this current attitude they are only closing the doors of the future generation of Igbo ascending to the highest office in the land.
“Nigeria is the only country we have; we must make it work,” he said.
