• Friday, March 29, 2024
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BusinessDay

2023 Igbo presidency comment: Agbakoba attacks Amaechi, urges Buhari to ignore him

Olisa Agbakoba

Olisa Agbakoba human right lawyer, has said that it was too early for the Minister of Transport, Rotimi Amaechi to decide which region will produce the country’s next president in 2023, urging President Muhammadu Buhari to ignore him.

Agbakoba was reacting to a statement credited to Amaechi last weekend that the people of the South-east should not demand the presidency in 2023 because the Igbo have nothing to bring to the negotiation table.

The Minister also accused the region of working against the re-election bid of President Muhammadu Buhari, stressing that President Buhari will not support the region’s bid for the nation’s top job in 2023.

“I don’t know what they will do now for voting against the APC, for refusing to support the APC, they cannot come to the table to demand the presidency slot for people like us in the APC.

“If the Igbo had come and voted Buhari, they would boldly tell President Buhari and the National Chairman of the party that presidency should go to the Southeast,” Amaechi said

Chiding the Minister over the comment in an interview with BusinessDay, Tuesday, Agbakoba noted that such comment was against the intention of President Buhari who had promised an inclusive administration after winning a second term.

Agbakoba, who is a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), rather advised President Buhari to concentrate his effort on taping the resources of the country for its optimal development.

According to him, “It is too early for him to be talking about a region producing the next president. I don’t believe what Amaechi said.

“In any event, Amaechi is not Nigeria’s president, Buhari should ignore him. Development of the country should be the priority.

“I think the President has promised that he would run an inclusive government, he has not given us a clue he is going to be different,” Agbakoba said.

He further lamented the deplorable security situation across the country under the Buhari administration, stressing that the country was more fragile now than it had ever been under the current All Progressives Congress (APC) government.

“The President is going to be 80 years after the expiration of his tenure. He should be concerned about the legacy he wants to leave behind and run and inclusive government. His good legacies would be the only thing that would make Nigerians to remember him for good,” he said.

 

Iniobong Iwok