The Quest For 2023 Igbo Presidency, Not Only Rational and Logical But Morally Justified

By Ifeanyi Obute.

A lot has been said about Igbo Presidency come 2023. It is one of the nation’s top political topic. Before 2023, many more analysis on the topic will still flood into the nation’s political discourse/space.

Is Igbo presidency in a 2023, a political necessity that should not be trifled with? Who are the major forces propagating the quest, and who are the supposed persons that should be pursuing the quest? Is it a topic that should be taken very seriously, or is it just one of those things…? What are the arguments and rationale for the quest? These, and many other issues ought to be clearly worked out in order to have a defined trajectory in our analysis.

Before we go further, it is pertinent to clearly point out that there is no part of Nigeria’s extant Laws that commands Igbo presidency. No part of our Laws provided ethnic basis as a parameter for deciding who occupies Also Rock Villa. That being said, it is Constitutionally null and void to anchor the quest for 2023 Igbo presidency on any “written” Laws of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
But, is the “written” Nigerian Laws the only qualified parameter to use in determining who will be the President of Nigeria? The answer to this question is an EMPHATIC NEGATIVE because Nigeria from her Independence till date, had been deciding where the president will come from, outside the confines of the written Laws of the country.

From the time of Alhaji Tafewa Balewa, the first Prime Minister, till date, the politics of who occupies the topmost position in Nigeria had always been decided on factors completely outside the provisions of the country’s written Laws. The Law says that any Nigerian citizen that has fulfilled some stipulated requirements, can be elected the president.

But it is crystal clear that ethnicity and religion has been adopted as the chief determinant factors for adopting who will be the president. This is so because Nigeria is a very diverse society; with the ethnic diversity revolving majorly around the 3 major ethnic groups – Hausa/Fulani, Igbo and Yoruba; whilst the religious diversity is majorly on Christianity and Islam. The essence of capturing this two factors in the national political permutations, is to ensure that the diversities doesn’t generate undue tensions. This understanding, although not written in our laid down Laws, is correctly anchored on the UNIVERSAL AND TRANSCENDENTAL PRINCIPLE OF NATURAL JUSTICE. This universally acknowledged Moral Law, remains the true bedrock of all crafted human Laws.

In Nigeria, we have Igbos, Hausa/Fulanis, and Yorubas as the dominating ethnic groups. We also have two dominating religions of Christianity and Islam. Politically, Nigeria is structured alongside Northern and Southern units. This structuring predates the 1914 amalgamation of Lord Lugard.

In the Northern area, the dominant ethnic group is the Hausa/Fulani, and their dominant religion is Islam. Although, there are pockets of other distinct tribes in the region.
In the Southern Nigerian, we have the Igbos and the Yorubas as the two dominant ethnic groups. The Yorubas are found in the Western region, while the Igbos are in the East. The dominant religion in the East is Christianity, but in the West, Christianity and Islam is almost equally distributed. But in all, the Southern Nigeria is basically a Christian region. Just like in the North, there are other distinct tribes in the Southern Nigeria, outside Igbo and Yoruba.

The population of the country is almost equally distributed along the Northern and Southern Nigeria, but the politics of the true statistics of Nigeria’s population is still a highly volatile topic. But, it’s assumed that the population of the regions are roughly the same.

National politics has always been couched in such a manner that tries to carry the 3 major ethnic groups along. Also, religious consideration is always brought into the equation. All these, although never captured in any of our Constitutions, are always considered. So, those saying that Igbo presidency in 2023 is unconstitutional, are just being politically correct, but morally hypocritical and infantile. Everything mustn’t be in the Constitution, but everything is commonsensical and morally analysable.
In 1999, the two major political parties – APP and PDP decided to give their presidential tickets to two Yoruba men. The reason being first that a northerner is handing over power, secondly, a Westerner in the person of Abiola was denied the opportunity of ruling Nigeria when he won the 1993 presidential election. All these reasons for arriving at the decision of 1999 were very genuine, albeit unconstitutional. But, Nigerians, especially the Igbos understood and played along. Two Igbo men in the persons of Late Alex Ekwueme and Ogbonnaya Onuh were the most qualified in the two political parties.

Gen. Obasonjo did two terms and handed power back to the North. There was no constitutional mandate to that effect. He could have supported Peter Odili of Rivers State to continue after him, but he didn’t do that. He applied common and moral sense to know the necessity of allowing moral necessity to subsume what the Constitution says. He handed over to Musa Yar Adua.

Yar’Adua died in power, hence his vice, Goodluck Jonathan was sworn in. Jonathan completed the term of his boss, and went for another term. During the tail end of his first term, the tension and pressure coming from the north, asking for him to return power to the north was literally electrifying. The political tension was overwhelming, yet the Constitution of the country doesn’t support those charging up the polity then.

Nevertheless, Goodluck Jonathan defied the political WARMONGERS and contested again. He lost to Buhari in a very controversial way. Goodluck Jonathan was an Ijaw man, a minority tribes in Southern Nigeria.

Buhari is still in power, would be completing his second term in 2023. He’s a northerner. And, pursuant to the morally justified pattern of rotating power between the North and South, it will be the turn of the South by 2023. The question on every lip is, which ethnic group is most qualified and morally justified to produce the president? The straight answer is, THE IGBOS!

Why Igbos? The reason is as numerous and genuine as anything. First, Igbo is among the two major Southern tribes, and ever since the Southern Nigeria has been ruling from 1999, Igbos have not tasted the seat. So, it’s morally necessary and politically expedient that Igbos are supported by other regions of the country to produce a president by 2023. Moral law is not always legally binding, but it’s far transcendental than all other legal laws. Igbo presidency come 2023, is the best moral and political choice the Nigerian State can ever make!

Ifeanyi Obute writes from Enugu. He’s the SouthEast coordinator of EDON. A public affairs analyst, sociopolitical commentator, youth activist and a writer. ifecojp@gmail.com. 08035087201.

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