Zoning Dilemma: APC and PDP Tussle Over Presidential Candidates

Strategic Insights -

The presidential election season in Nigeria is heating up, with both the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) embroiled in a complex and subtle geo-political contest for where their presidential tickets should go. The ruling party, APC, has yet to make a clear pronouncement on zoning, while the PDP is facing internal divisions on how to manage its inter/intra-party relations. Southern stakeholders, including leaders like Chief Edwin Clarke, Pa Ayo Adebanjo, and Ambassador George Obiozor, are pushing for the presidency to return to the South by 2023. However, other prominent Nigerians, such as Mamman Daura, a former INEC chairman, Prof Attahiru Jega, and some APC and PDP members, argue that competence should drive the process, not ethnicity.

Key Takeaways:

  • The APC has yet to make a clear pronouncement on zoning, while the PDP is facing internal divisions on the issue.
  • Southern stakeholders are pushing for the presidency to return to the South, citing a need for fairness and equity after President Muhammadu Buhari's eight-year tenure.
  • Some pro-North agitators within the PDP argue that the North should be allowed to keep the ticket, citing the party's zoning arrangement and the fact that the South has held power for 13 out of 16 years since 1999.
  • Former national chairmanship aspirant of the PDP, High Chief Raymond Dokpesi, argues that a northerner is the only candidate who can win the 2023 presidential election for PDP, while others, like former national legal adviser of PDP Mark Jacob, argue that the feeling among members is for the party to zone to the Southern part of the country.
  • The North is bickering over which zone should produce the presidential candidate, with some campaigns pushing for the ticket to go to the North-West, while others advocate for the North-Central as the most liberal part of the North.

Statistics:

  • Since 1999, the South has held power for 13 out of 20 years.
  • The North has held power for 7 out of 20 years.
  • President Buhari's eight-year tenure will end in 2023, creating a power vacuum that some Nigerians believe should be filled by the South.
  • The PDP has had its presidential candidates from the North-West (Yar'Adua) and North East (Atiku Abubakar), while some Nigerians advocate for the North-Central to produce the next presidential candidate.

Sources:

  • HIBUZO UKAIBE, "Zoning Dilemma: APC and PDP Tussle Over Presidential Candidates", [Source 1]
  • HIBUZO UKAIBE, "Zoning Dilemma: APC and PDP Tussle Over Presidential Candidates", [Source 1]
  • HIBUZO UKAIBE, "Zoning Dilemma: APC and PDP Tussle Over Presidential Candidates", [Source 1]