…Say they are let downs
BY ADEYEMI AKANJI, BAUCHI – A coalition of Northern Youths groups on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC), on Sunday staged a peaceful protest dissociating themselves from the stance of the Governors of the Party from the region for stepping down for the Southern region.
The protesters, who came few hours after the Northern Governors on the platform of the APC conceded the 2023 presidency to the Southern part of the country, pointedly declared that that the the Northern APC Governors are strictly on their own.
Thy said that limiting the contest to a particular region is not democratic thus, insisted that the position of the governors did not reflect the opinions of Northerners.
The coalition made up of APC Youths elements and North-East Youth Forum for APC jointly held a peaceful protest against the decision of the governors who they described as “selfish, self-centered and power mongers”.
The youths carrying placards with different inscriptions demanded that if the APC wants to remain in power beyond 2023, it should allow a candidate from the North to emerge in other to be able to match the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) which has a formidable candidate in the person of Atiku Abubakar.
They also berated the Northern Governors for not doing anything to develop their respective states but plunged the region into untold hardships particularly with myriad issues of banditry, kidnapping, robbery, poverty, unemployment and other social vices.
Addressing Journalists, Chairman of the APC Progressives Youth Elements, Al-Amin Bala Mai’Auduga, stressed that the Northern Governors did not carry out wide consultation before reaching the decision they announced on Saturday, saying that it does not represent the entire Northern region.
Mai’Auduga said; “We are not in support of the decision because it is against our political wish for 2023. The Northern Governors just sat down and took the decision for the entire people of the North. They are on their own”.
He therefore called on the APC to allow a level playing field for all the aspirants to allow whoever emerge in a fair contest to be supported by the entire Party members.
He further said; “The North has eminently qualified people who can succeed President Muhammadu Buhari. We therefore want the APC to beam its searchlight to the North and get a presidential candidate”.
Also speaking, the State Coordinator of the North-East Youths Forum of APC, Comrade Ibrahim Hashim Abdullahi said that the Northern youths will not support a presidential candidate of the APC from the Southern part of the country.
He said; “President Muhammadu Buhari has started a lot of programs and projects that will make the North better, we need someone who knows the North very well and will be able to complete the projects and programs”.
