Tobi Adebayo
The apex Igbo socio-cultural organisation, Ohanaeze Ndigbo has condemned the Chairman of Daar Communications, Raymond Dokpesi for saying no Southern candidate can win the presidency in 2023.
The media mogul had in an interview with Daily Trust said that no candidate from the South East nor the entire Southern region can win the 2023 presidential election under the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
“The South East cannot win the election for the PDP. That is just the truth of the matter. I don’t beat around the bush; I treat issues as they are and as I understand them. There is no candidate from the South East, even I dare say there is no candidate from the South that you put in the North today that will be able to win. It is going to be a humongous challenge,” he said.
Reacting to Dokpesi’s interview, Ohanaeze said the Daar Chairman was trying to appease his benefactors in the North with his statement.
The group’s statement issued on Tuesday read: “Those who lament on the bleak future of Nigeria often cite the unpredictable character of our leaders.
“The Greek political philosopher, Plato, was so dissatisfied with leaders who lacked the moral strength to act according to the common good – in other words, rulers motivated by self-interest were not good leaders. Most do not realize that the forces of morality and justice constitute the transcendental cord that holds humanity in shape.
“In other words, there can never be peace in the absence of justice. Put differently, Nigeria will remain in crisis until the leaders embrace justice, equity and fairness as a guiding philosophy.
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“I sympathise with our southern son, Chief Dokpesi because he started as the personal assistant to Alhaji Bamaga Tukur at the Nigerian Ports Authority. Dokpesi also served under Alhaji Umaru Dikko and General Garba Wushishi. Records reveal that Alh. Bamanga Tukur paid his fees from secondary school to the postgraduate level. To that extent, he owes allegiance to his benefactors and feels no compunction to profile the entire south as an electoral liability.
“One can easily understand the psychological ambivalence in the Dokpesi persona. On the other hand, there is no reason for the condescension and disdain he handed over to the entire South.
“Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide is dismayed that Dokpesi could demonstrate this type of duplicity in a matter that is so clearly defined.
“The human spirit does not oscillate like a pendulum; East, West, North and South. The rotation of the presidency between the North and the South is the truth. Two options are before the advocates of justice and progress in Nigeria; we either choose light or darkness”
