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Politics of Wednesday, 8 February 2023

Source: www.mynigeria.com

Southerners have served for 13 of the 24 years PDP had in power - Dele Momodu defends Atiku emergence as flagbearer

Chief Dele Momodu, the Director, Strategic Communications of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has defended Atiku Abubakar's emergence as the presidential candidate of the party.

Speaking on Channels TV's morning show, The 2023 Verdict, Dele Momodu, who contested the primaries that saw Atiku emerge as the flagbearer for the party dismissed the argument by some party chieftains that it was the turn of the south to produce the next president.

This has caused a sharp division between the rank and file of the party with many other chieftains defecting to the opposing political parties.

He said: "There is nothing in the constitution of Nigeria that says one or two terms in the north, one or two times in the south. What happens is that PDP is far already of the balancing of politics and the politicians in Nigeria.

"Between 1999 and 2007, President Olusegun Obasanjo, a southerner, a Christian was president. Then President Umar Yar'adua came on board, spent three years then departed. Then his vice president Goodluck Jonathan took over and spent a total of five years. That is five plus eight years, that is thirteen years."

"He was still giving a ticket as controversial as it was. If he had won in 2015, he would have spent nine years in power - add that to Obasanjo's eight years. That will give you 15 years for a southerner out of 24 years since our return to democracy."

"So today, a southerner in PDP has served for 13 out of 24 years. Nobody talks about it but every day they say it is the turn of the south."

NBA