- By Kenneth Udeh from Abuja
Chief Whip of the Senate, Senator Orji Uzor Kalu has hinted that the Igbos from the South-East extraction will benefit massively from the emergence of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu as President of the country.
According to Kalu, Tinubu the Presidential Candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) will give special priority to the political, economic and infrastructural interest of the region when he becomes President.
The former Abia Governor who expressed satisfaction about Tinubu’s wide consultations in the Southeast, called on Igbos to wait their turn when the rest of the country will agree to zone Presidency to the region. But for now, he called on them to rally massively behind Tinubu; vouching that he(Tinubu) will protect the interest of Igbos and that they will be the best beneficiaries of his Presidency
The lawmaker stated this in a chat with newsmen at the National Assembly complex in Abuja on Tuesday. Kalu stressed the need for Igbos to back the Presidential aspiration of Tinubu;
“Presidency is not a regional issue. I asked the political parties to zone the presidency to the South East. When they didn’t do that, and since the presidency is not a regional issue, I had to withdraw.
“I have no problem with Igbo man being president. But we have to do it with other Nigerians. If we don’t do it with other Nigerians, it is not going to work, no matter how popular you are. It’s the president of Nigeria, not president of Igbo land.
“I’m an Igbo man to the core. I’m also a Nigerian to the core. If anyone from the southeast would have been nominated for presidency, I would have been the one. So, it’s a party business. I have no grudges against anybody who is running.
When asked his view on the aspiration of the Labour Candidate Peter Obi who hails from the South-East, Kalu represents Abia North said he holds nothing personal against Obi running for Presidency but as a loyal member of APC he cannot work against the interest of his party and that of his close allies and friends in Tinubu and his university roommate, Kashim Shettima.
He explained; “It is not personal. It is political and party. This thing is about the party winning the election. I have chosen to be in APC. Why will I vote against Tinubu? It’s madness, and I’m not going to do it. Elections go along party lines, not along tribal lines.
“For me, we will wait for another time and see how all Nigerians will agree to zone the presidency to Igbo land. But for now, our presidential candidate is Bola Ahmed Tinubu. Tinubu is strategic, he will make his presidency beneficial to the Igbos. The Igbos will be the biggest beneficiaries of Tinubu’s presidency.
Responding to questions on the threat by opposition lawmakers to commence impeachment proceedings against Buhari if the worsening security situation is not improved after six weeks, Kalu though admitted that some Senators nursed the ambition he however dismissed the threat to impeach President Muhammadu Buhari over the nation’s insecurity labelling it as “mere gossip”.
Kalu said that no lawmaker is talking about impeaching Buhari owing to the improved security situation.
The Senate Chief Whip added that any attempt to raise the issue on the floor of the Senate will fail as the ruling party has the required numbers to defend the president. He said no impeachment plot either against Buhari or Lawan will sail through in the Senate.
Kalu doused the insinuations; “The issue of impeachment is a non-existing issue. Nobody is talking about it. Even if they try, they will fail because we have the numbers to resist it.
“President Buhari has done well in some areas and failed in some areas. The impeachment threat is mere gossip. It is not possible. I know that senators were agitating about insecurity. You can see that the security situation is improving.
“Generally, there is a daily improvement in security. We want to see that the tempo is sustained. When the tempo is sustained, no senator will mention impeachment of the president on the floor of the Senate.”
