Former Enugu State Governor and Senator representing Enugu East Senatorial District, Chimoroke Nnamani, yesterday, reviewed the performance of the All Progressives Congress (APC) administration since 2015 and submitted that the abysmal performance of the ruling party is a guarantee for automatic return to power by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in 2023.
“If we were under a parliamentary system of government, the APC would have received a vote of no confidence and be sacked for non-performance, while the PDP would take a bow and be elected to govern Nigeria,” Nnamani stated.
According to the lawmaker, the issues that characterise the Muhammadu Buhari-led administration include the high debt profile of the country, rising unemployment, skyrocketing foreign exchange rates, inflation, insecurity, labour unrest, and lack of infrastructure.
In an interview, the former governor said that the PDP should braze up to the challenges of saving and rescuing Nigeria in 2023.
Nnamani lamented that successive administrations, at the centre, have ignored the power equation, which recognises the South East as one of the legs of the tripod in the power equation of the country.
He expressed concern that the continued neglect of the zone in the power equation is sending wrong signals that the region is unwanted in the Nigerian Union.
He went down memory lane, saying: “Since Commodore Ebitu Ukiwe (Rtd) was eased out from the number two position under Military President Ibrahim Babangida, no Southeasterner has been considered for either the president or the vice.
“This is the dilemma of the Igbo man. We have been shortchanged in the leadership of Nigeria. This is not the nation our progenitors negotiated. It is against the spirit of the Nigerian union, where tribes and tongues may differ but in brotherhood, we stand.”
The former governor lamented that the Igbo, in spite of their spread across Nigeria and beyond, are now a pseudo minority on account of the tragic circumstances, including but not limited to the military incursion into government.
Nnamani queried: “How can we (Ndigbo) be proud to belong to a union where we cannot aspire or be considered for top positions.”
“If 2023 passes without the South East being accommodated in the power arrangements, we would have to wait for the next 16 years and will be out of power reckoning for 40 years from 1999.”
He said that the PDP has a window of opportunity to correct the imbalance against the South East, affirming that the zone has kept a clean slate and maintained political fidelity since 1999.
SOurce: Guardian.ng