On Thursday, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, the apex Igbo socio-cultural institution, met a delegation from the Peoples Democratic Party’s National Support Forum, led by Dr. Ahmad Musa.
Mazi Okechukwu Isiguzoro, the Secretary-General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide, confirmed this to Newsmen in a statement.
He said the group was welcomed at Abakaliki, the capital of Ebonyi State, where they had lengthy discussions.
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During the meeting, the Forum advised Ndigbo not to desert the PDP, but to accept the role of running mate to its Presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, according to Isiguzoro.
“Dr. Ahmad Musa urged Ndigbo not to dump the opposition party, which they formed in 1998 through Dr. Alex Ekwueme’s G34.
“He insisted that the PDP remains the only party for Igbos to achieve Igbo presidency in 2027. They advocated that the South-East should accept the VP slot and work with Atiku.
“The Forum was also of the opinion that APC will elongate the South-East Presidency to 2039″, instead of 2027,” Isiguzoro said.
He, however, said the Ohanaeze, which had prior to the presidential primary elections rejected VP slots, was consulting widely to know the next line of action.
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Meanwhile, the Ohanaeze scribe advised politicians to learn from the lessons of the 1983 elections, as well as the events of 1993 elections.
“Specifically, the APC presidential candidate, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu should learn the importance of carrying along all ethnic groups in his agenda,” he said.
In another development, the Ohanaeze also said it the World Igbo Youth Congress, which is championing the candidature of Mr. Peter Obi of the Labour Party.
Leader of the delegation, Dr. Francis Anagha Ufuoma was quoted as saying that Ndigbo and Nigerians “are currently mobilizing the electorates towards the Labour Party.
“Nigerians are tired of corrupt politicians and the younger generation of Nigerians has designed strategies for Obi’s victory in 2023. We urge Igbo leadership to openly endorse the Obi’s Labour Party in 2023.”
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Responding, Isiguzoro re-echoed his stand that consultations were ongoing.
He said the major tasks before Nigerians, especially the youths “is to aggressively obtain their PVCs before the closure of the ongoing voter’s registration exercise by ending of June 2022.”
He expressed disappointment against INEC officials, alleging that there were attempts “to disenfranchise Nigerians, especially Igbos in the ongoing voters’ registration exercise.
“We have evidences that INEC officials in some parts of South-East are not keen on the enrollment of eligible voters.
“The INEC should extend the exercise till September 30, 202,2 to accommodate millions of eligible voters.”
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