North Should Not Produce Buhari’s Successor

Group ignores Southern governors call, urges AFDB and other foreign bodies to stop giving out loans to the Buhari led APC Federal Government

The Former member of the House of Representatives, Mr. Karimi Sunday, has explained why the North should still produce the occupant of Aso Villa when President Muhammadu Buhari leaves office in 2023.

Sunday, who represented Yagba Federal Constituency of Kogi State from 2011 to 2019, urged well-meaning Nigerians to key into the smooth arrangement on the ground and not overheat the system with unnecessary controversy as to which part of the country should produce the next President.

Sunday spoke against the backdrop of the call by the 17 southern governors that President Buhari’s successor must come from the southern part of the country, in line with the principle of equity and fairness.

Founder of the group, Abdulrasheed Shehu, in a statement yesterday, announced the appointment of its national executive members that would project Atiku’s “visionary idea of sustainable national development.”

Atiku, who owns the American University of Nigeria (AUN), Yola, said that due to massive corruption in government, the African Development Bank (AfDB) should stop making funds available to the Nigerian government and concentrate on the private sector.

Atiku, who spoke during the 12th Commencement of AUN yesterday, maintained that the only way AfDB could boost development in Africa was to focus on the private sector, due to lack of transparency and accountability in government.

The former VP expressed worries that government could not account for what international agencies were donating to alleviate the suffering of Nigerians.

According to him, the private sector remains the only viable channel to lift the youth out of poverty, if AfDB abolishes the policy of allocating huge funds to the government that cannot give an account of them.

AfBB President, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, said that the management of the bank was working to release $788.5 million to Nigeria to support its digital economy programme and for responding to the Coronavirus Disease.

Adesina urged African countries to stop borrowing for consumption, but for the development of infrastructure, create a friendly environment for the private sector.

Nigerians however believe that the South-Eastern Nigeria geopolitical zone should be given the opportunity to produce the next President of Nigeria.

This is so because the APC led federal government has mismanaged the economy and brought it to its knee.