http://www.newsportng.com.ng As the new administration of president-elect, Bola Ahmed Tinubu looks forward to kickstart May 29th, 2023 barely any changes, Northerners under the auspices of Democratic Initiative Watch has said that the House of Senate and House of Representatives should be allowed to choose who governed them.
The spokespersons, Northern Elders’ Forum, (NEF) Dr. Hakeem Baba Ahmed stated this in Arewa House on Thursday said if legislatures who know themselves cannot elect their leaders, then democracy is at risk.
Hakeem who served as the guest speaker at the event stressed that northerners have done their own job by voting credible leaders and therefore, positions that quantify majority votes garnered by APC in northern region must be given to them.
He said that, “we have the right to demand what we want from the person whom we sacrifice our all for by voting him into power. Any position that is below the garnered votes from the North will not be accepted.
“We fought and said no northerner should aspire because we said it’s time for the southern president.
“The best thing is to respect the independence of the legislature and allow members to choose their leaders. Elected legislatures waiting for final verdicts from the courts who are lobbying groups and members of the public to be elected by colleagues or President-elect forget that if successful, they will be leading legislature.
“Groups which lobby Tinubu for ‘theirs’, should know they will pay a price in the long run.That is how politics is played. The North does not want just any legislator from the North to become Speaker. We should hope that he has the highest personal integrity and a good idea of how his position can help him. All of them contesting should submit to a process by which their fellow contestants nominate them and then support. The same thing should be done at Senate level.” He said.
Also speaking at the event, one of the discussants, Professor Abubakar Sadiq from Gombe state, said north is always at advantage when it comes to democracy because of their number which is the criteria that determines election outcome.
Sadiq said Northern Nigeria contributed 64% to the election process that produced Bola Ahmed Tinubu with five million, five hundred and eighty seven thousand seven hundred and sixty four votes. (5,587,764) While other regions produced 36% that is less than 4-million votes.
He said that the voting pattern since 1979 has been like that till date, adding that no region has sacrificed for the unity of Nigeria like the Northerners.
“No region has sacrifice like the North in the history of Nigeria because they have the majority number but they had to sacrifice it for the unity of Nigeria. If not for the North that stood there’s no way a southerner will emerged as APC flag-bearer.
“The four major political parties got their major votes from the North regardless of where they came from.”
Sadiq also said that even in the race for speakership and Senate President position, North can decide to hold all of them to themselves because they have majority in the two chambers hence it is not against the practice of democracy. However, they deemed it fit to be liberal just for the sake of the unity of the nation and therefore any attempt to marginalized the northern region will not be acceptable at all.
