We’re ready to abide by what our elders say -Gov Aliyu

Former President Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida and former Vice President Atiku Abubakar- led Northern Political Leaders Forum is consulting with the South East political leaders with a view to agree on a common ground on zoning.

 This move, Sunday Trust can reveal, is being spearheaded by the former Minister of Finance, Malam Adamu Ciroma.
Ciroma, according to a member of the group, is having talks with the political class in the South East over rotational presidency with a view to make the region toe the line of the North. The South-East, a likely beneficiary of the zoning arrangement, is also a long-term political ally of the North.
The source told Sunday Trust last night that the meeting couldn’t hold last week because of Ciroma’s absence from the country. “Malam Adamu Ciroma would very soon meet with the political leadership of the South-East over rotational presidency. It is expected that at the meeting the South-East would come up with a resolution endorsing zoning as canvassed by the North,” the source said.   
Only last week, the Northern group had also taken its campaign to the Northern Governors Forum during their meeting in Kaduna. Former Inspector General of Police, Alhaji M. D. Yusuf, led the group’s delegation which made submission to the governors.
The spokesperson of the group and former Senate President, Dr Iyorchia Ayu said that,Cont’d from page 1

“It is only fair that after President Olusegun Obasanjo’s two terms in office which was facilitated by the North, the rest of the country should not be denied its chance just because our son, President Umar Yar’adua died.”  
The northern leaders’ standpoint on zoning was two days before the governors meeting in Kaduna echoed by the Second Republic Vice President Alex Ekwueme in an interview with the BBC Hausa Service in London. Ekwueme argued that rotational presidency should be maintained because, “If Yar’adua was alive he would have taken his automatic ticket as agreed upon.”
The former vice president said that he was part of the agreement that saw the reaching of the agreement of the rotational presidency during President Olusegun Obasanjo administration. “It was a gentlemanly agreement which was overwhelmingly agreed upon, and I bet you, Yar’adua would have completed his tenure but for the unfortunate death that took him away,” he said.
He said that zoning of the presidency clause was included in the 1995 Constitution during the National Constitutional Conference as part of efforts to unite the country. That effort was, “Unfortunately truncated by the regime of Abdulsalami Abubakar which amended the constitution and removed that portion.”
He explained the essence of zoning saying that, “We said the option was to make it a constitutional matter and we unanimously agreed to put it in the 1995 constitution to go round for 30 years with all regions taking their slots; but unfortunately Abubakar who was in a hurry to handover to civilians cancelled that portion and in fact rejected entirely the 1995 constitution which I think was one of the best for this country.”
Ekwueme said that despite that, “Still, because of the importance of the issue when we came in the PDP we created the rotational arrangement so that the South and the North would have taken eight years term each and already Obasanjo had done his own for the South and if Yar’adua was alive he would have completed his own eight years, meaning nobody would be talking about this or that by now.”           
Meanwhile political parties are equally holding talks for possible realignment before the next elections. Several political parties are already making consultations with a view to field consensus candidates in next year’s elections.
The National Chairman of the Labour Party, Barrister Dan Iwuanyanwu told Sunday Trust in an interview that his party alongside 24 others were already holding talks in that regards. “There is a Coalition for New Nigeria. We have been holding meetings. The last time we met here there were 24 political parties while the other week we had about 16. But we are not merging and nobody is losing his identity,” he said.
Iwuanyanwu said that, “One thing we had agreed in the last meeting was that we would present one presidential candidate under one political party.  Also, a 7-man committee has been set up to work out the modalities for the National and State Assemblies elections. We have also agreed to support these candidates across the boards.” 
The National Secretary of the All Nigerian Peoples Party (ANPP), Senator Sa’idu Umar Kumo told Sunday Trust that, “Our party is open to political alliance with various interest groups and parties with a view to come together and face the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2011 general elections.”
Kumo foreclosed the idea of the merger with other political parties, saying that, “We can do merger if other political parties that have a governor, such as the Labour Party (LP), Progressive Peoples Party (PPA), All Progressive Peoples Alliance (APGA) and the Action Congress (AC) agree to come together.”