North’s Rulership A Disaster For Nigeria, Says Bucknor-Akerele

Senator (Mrs.) Kofoworola Buc­knor-Akerele, former deputy gover­nor of Lagos State, on Wednesday said North’s rulership has been a disaster for Nigeria, saying it will do Nigeria a lot of good if a Southerner emerges as president in the 2023 general election.

She also described as false claim the belief in some quarters that only a Northerner can win the presidency for PDP, saying the South also has lots of presidential materials who are capable of moving the nation forward.

Speaking exclusively with Daily Independent on the decision by her party to throw the presidential ticket open after the North has produced the national chairman, Bucknor-Ak­erele, a member of the PDP’s Board of Trustees (BoT), said even though only names of Northern aspirants are being mentioned now, she is looking forward to having Southerners come out and vie for the highest position in the land in PDP.

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According to her, the North’s rulership has been a disaster for Nigeria despite being in power for most parts of Nige­ria’s independence.

She particularly singled out President Muhammadu Buhari’s government, saying it has brought untold hardship to Nigerians while foreign investors are also leaving the country in droves owing to un­favourable policies and insecu­rity challenges.

“We have always had rota­tion between the North and South. In our party, we have always tried to make sure that all the six zones form part of the hierarchy of government. Therefore, I am looking for­ward to seeing some Southern people come out as presidential aspirants in our party. We still have a year and half to go be­fore the election. So, let’s just wait and see.

“What makes anyone think that it is only the North that has presidential material? The North has been ruling us and it has been a disaster for this country. When we had occa­sions when Southerners were ruling us, the country was not in the parlous state.

“When Obasanjo was presi­dent, we saw improvements in many sectors. He even got us debt relief from the Paris Club. When Jonathan was there, the country was moving forward. People were coming in to invest in our country.

“However, as soon as this government came in with all sorts of policies, half of the in­vestors who came into the coun­try ran away. So, it just goes to show how badly we are being governed. They pretend that they are moving the country forward.

“All the rail lines they are commissioning were all dreamt of and planned by Jonathan. So, why will anybody say we don’t have presidential materi­als in the South?

Independent