Mr. Osita Okechukwu, a founding member of the any Progressives Congress (APC), has encouraged Nigerians to exercise caution and not be swayed by His Excellency Atiku Abubakar’s maniacal desire to win the presidency at any costs.
On Tuesday, Okechukkwu addressed the media in response to President Bola Tinubu’s certificate being given to Atiku by Chicago State University per a court order.
The records that were made public on Monday are causing controversy as many onlookers have noted what they believe to be inaccuracies.
However, Okechukwu, who serves as the Director General of Voice of Nigeria (VON), claimed that Atiku, the PDP’s nominee for president in the elections of 2023, lacked the moral authority to discuss the rule of law.
“Honestly, let’s not cherry-pick, can an elder statesman who vehemently violated the rotation convention in his party’s constitution and the ongoing national rotation convention honestly talk of the rule of law?” he questioned. Because it is common knowledge that one must enter equity with clean hands.
Although many of our compatriots were concerned about the controversy surrounding the Chicago State University papers, the truth is that only the diploma was sent over to INEC.
“The survival of our fledgling democracy and the fragile unity of our dear country are of paramount importance, especially with anti-democratic wind blowing in our West African sub-region,” Okechukwu argued in his appeal.
“Let’s not forget that Atiku nominated Tinubu by knowingly violating the PDP Constitution and the national rotation convention, which uphold equity, natural justice, and good conscience as the armour dividing our beloved nation,” the statement reads.
He urged Atiku to “be bold enough, step down from his high horse and profusely apologise to the entire membership of the PDP he betrayed and his in-laws – Ndigbo, who put all their eggs in the PDP’s basket for over 20 years in the hope that PDP would oblige them their turn in the 2023 presidential election” instead of raising a whirlwind.
The other statement made by Okechukwu was that “we better resist the temptations of following His Excellency, Atiku Abubakar’s inordinate ambition drive to become president to set our dear country on fire.”
“We must not undermine our democracy, which has been getting better with each election cycle,” he admonished. It’s true that times are tough and that the 2023 presidential election has problems, but we must let the anti-democratic winds that are blowing through our West African area threaten our nascent democracy.
“However, democracy, as we all know, is evolutionary rather than revolutionary. I believe that Atiku’s avarice is inducing him into a state of mania where he will do anything to win the president or destroy everything in his path.
“Repeat, outside of cherry-picking, Atiku cannot be exonerated of violations of Section 7 of the PDP’s Constitution and the rotation arrangement that ruled the Fourth Republic.
Remember how Atiku walked out of the PDP convention in 2014 when Jonathan violated the rotation convention? In 2019, only northern presidential candidates competed in the PDP primary in Port Harcourt, and he benefited the most? In 2022, he abandoned his great party? Okechukwu gave consent.
According to Okechukwu, “the presidential election could have been a southern affair between Tinubu vs. Obi” if Atiku had displayed statesmanlike behaviour and heeded the inbuilt rotation convention of the Fourth Republic and that of the PDP.
