Chairman of the Southern Governors’ Forum and Governor of Ondo State, Oluwarotimi Akeredolu has reiterated the stand of Southern Governors’ for the next President of Nigeria to come from the southern region.
Speaking in an interview with Arise TV on Wednesday, the governor, explained that the insistence of the region to produce the next President will not tear the fabric of the nation’s unity, rather, remain the only way the country can stay united.
He said that since the North would hold power for eight years, it is only fair and just for the South to have that same power.
“The only way we remain united is that there must be fairness, equality, and justice. We are saying if the North has eight years, we must have it in the south.
“When we say south, those of us Governors in the south who met in Asaba are 17. We never mentioned which area in the south. We are not segmenting south. If it goes to the southeast, we will support them.
“We have a right of association. We are discussing matters that affect our interests. We have taken our decision and we have our strategies. Part of our strategies is consultation. We don’t have to tell you.” He stressed.
Meanwhile, the governor has berated his counterpart in Kaduna state, over his comment on the Anti-open grazing law, which he said is not implementable.
In a statement issued by the state Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Mr. Donald Ojogo, Akeredolu said such a statement should not have come from a leader.
The statement read in part, “From all indications, Governor Nasir El-Rufai if he was properly quoted and his views not misrepresented, is struggling hard to export banditry to the South under an expressed opinion that is laced with mischief.
“Perhaps, it is apt to state clearly that the likes of Governor El-Rufai are already in a hysteric ‘mode’ of escalating and indeed, externalising banditry, especially as the military onslaught against criminal elements and other terror variants suffices in the North.
“For emphasis, any such comment like that of the Kaduna Governor, if indeed he made that statement, merely seeks to encourage anarchy under the guise of resentment of a law by affected stakeholders.”
He assured that the anti-open grazing law, especially in Ondo State, had come to stay as Southern Governors were implementing the Anti-open grazing law with vigor while stressing that his stand to protect the livelihood of the people on Ondo State.
