Ondo State Governor, Oluwarotimi Akeredolu, has told the All Progressives Congress (APC) that the presidency should be zoned to the southern region of the country ahead of the 2023 general election.

Akeredolu, who is the Chairman of the Southern Governors Forum, said the ruling party must zone its presidential ticket to the South to avoid self-inflicted crises before the next year’s general election.

The governor said this in a statement he personally issued, a copy of which was obtained by The Star on Tuesday.

The statement was titled, ‘Our party, APC, must tread the path of equity’.

Governor Akeredolu noted that it is the turn of the southern part of the country to produce the next President after the tenure of President Muhammadu Buhari in 2023.

Akeredolu added that the APC leadership should have no difficulty in making a pronouncement on “this very important issue”, just as it has fixed various fees for the purchase of nomination forms.

The governor stated that the zoning of the ruling party’s presidential ticket must be done without delay, noting that the principle of Federal Character is enshrined in the 1999 Constitution (as amended).

He added that it would be disingenuous for anyone to argue against rotation as the country prepares for the 2023 general election.

Akeredolu stated: “Our party, the All Progressives Congress, just elected officers on the established principle of giving every part of the country an important stake in the political calculus. The focus has now shifted to the process which will culminate in the participation of our party in the general election scheduled for next year.

“All lovers of peace and freedom must do everything to eschew tendencies which may predispose them to taking decisions which promote distrust and lead to a crisis, the end of which nobody may be able to predict.

READ ALSO: 2023: APC yet to decide on zoning of presidential ticket, says Adamu

“The leadership of the party ensured that the principle of rotational representation guided its decision at the just-concluded Convention. The party Chairmanship position has gone to the North. All other offices have been filled on this understanding. This is the time the leaders of the party must make a categorical statement, devoid of equivocation, on the pattern of succession.

“The party Executive Committee has fixed a fee for the purchase of the nomination form for the office. It is expected, fervently, that it will proceed to complete the process by limiting the propensities for disagreement to a region for possible micro-management. It is very expedient that we avoid self-inflicted crises before the general election.

“It is the turn of the Southern part of the country to produce the next President. The party leadership should have no difficulty in making pronouncement on this very important issue, just as it has fixed various fees for the purchase of forms.

“This must be done without delay. The principle of Federal Character is enshrined in the 1999 Constitution, as amended. It will be disingenuous for anyone to argue against rotation at this period.

“We must not keep our party men and women guessing on the position of the leadership of the party. This is the time to weigh in and take control of the process.

“No statement must suggest, even remotely, that the party harbours certain sentiments which may predispose it to consider throwing the contest open. This is certainly not the time for equivocation,” the governor said.

The Star