OSOGBO – The Oluwo of Iwoland, Oba AbdurRosheed Akanbi, yesterday said he would be forced to join Yoruba nation agitators with other monarchs if the presidency is not given to the South in 2023.
In a statement made available to Saturday Sun by his Press Secretary, Alli Ibraheem, the monarch said the Yoruba nation agitators will be vindicated if power is retained in Northern Nigeria.
He maintained that the Southern candidates should be allowed to compete among themselves, saying that the conventional power shifting is cementing the unity of the nation.
The monarch who appealed to Northern traditional rulers, notable politicians and stakeholders, to intervene and support the power shift to Southern Nigeria, recalled how his traditional voice doused the tension of the agitators.
He posited that Southern candidates are credible and capable to lead Nigeria, saying there is no justification for denying them power for the unity of the country.
“We have a capable and credible candidate from Southern Nigeria vying to be president of Nigeria. The conventional power rotation has contributed immensely to cementing the unity of Nigeria. Retaining the power in the North will spur further agitations likely to question the oneness of Nigeria.
“I’m a leading natural paramount ruler from Southern Nigeria dousing tensions of the Yoruba nation agitators. My intervention was to ensure a united Nigeria. Then, the agitators raised many issues for consideration. One of them was the conventional power rotation of the presidency. We hoped their voice was noted for consideration. We don’t pray to see such a demonstration again. It can be curbed with political fairness ahead of the 2023 general elections. Politics must not tear the country apart.
“I’m appealing to Northern traditional rulers and stakeholders to consider the Southern presidency in the interest of fairness, equity and unity. President Muhammadu Buhari of Northern extraction has almost completed two terms of eight years. In fairness, power should return to the South.
“Retaining power in the North will fuel agitations. We hope some of us who quenched the previous protest will not join should the power remains in the North,” he stated.
