Every student of history in Nigeria knows that the amalgamation took place in 1914 when the Northern and Southern Protectorates were merged into a single colony.
It’s a universal fact that Nigeria was standing on a tripod stand after the amalgamation mainly Northern, South-East and Southwest regions and the country was further divided into six geopolitical zones during the regime of General Sani Abacha in 1993.
The 2023 election has been concluded and those who are not happy with the results announced have resorted to the court of competent jurisdiction to seek redress.
Anyone who understands how democracy works would agree that the electioneering period in a democracy penetrates what divides the electorates and that has been the position of those schools of thought who are not satisfied with the usage of democracy to elect leaders.
However, one of the remedies is for the winner to start amending the fence and loopholes of disunity that have been created during the electioneering period. The winner must see those that compete with him as partners in progress.
The 2023 presidential election brought another dimension to the political scenario because all the 3 regions that were formed together during amalgamation presented candidates and the issues of religion and ethnicity count a lot in deciding the winner.
After the 1993 election that produced Abiola Kingigbe’s well-acclaimed Muslim-Muslim ticket was also brought to the fore by the president-elect, Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Shettima Kashim on the same Muslim-Muslim ticket which has further caused dis-unity in the country. In a situation where Vice President Yemi could not campaign for his benefactor Asiwaju, and other top political stakeholders publicly left the party and maintained that the same ticket was against their faith.
On the need to persuade the Christian community and other factors, the Senate President should be zoned to the South-East region as a first aid to start the healing process of unifying the country. The unification of Nigeria cannot be overemphasized and the problem from one region would surely tell on others. Not only will the zoning of the Senate Presidency douse the tension of neglect and agitation that have been speculated but also to heal the pain of having the same faith presidential ticket.
No doubt, zoning of Senate Presidency to the South-Eastern of the country will propel our unity as a nation and the essence of unity in a democratic process cannot be under-utilized as an essential tool for social, economic, and political stability.
The saying “If you want to go far, go together” emphasizes unity and teamwork to achieve tremendous success. Alone, growth and success are limited, but with a team effort, the possibilities are endless.
I have seen many reputable senators who have started lobbying for the number 3 job but would end up as potential running mates. The truth that must be told is that anyone that wants good for this country will never pray for us to have a Northerner and Southwesterner as a senate president. God forbid, we won’t survive it as a nation.
Today, we don’t need any soothsayer to tell us that our unity as a nation is on trial and that Tinubu’s presidency when coming on board must do everything possible to remedy and rebuild our unity of purpose.
Irrespective of our political affiliation, it’s time for us to come together as a nation and chart the common cause for the prosperity of all Nigerians, and this cannot be achieved in isolation without unity of purpose. I reiterate the stand in my earlier article that hunger knows no religion or ethnicity.
It’s important to state that the family will never have peace if one side of the family is not included in the scheme of things. The election is over and the tone of governance must take the centre stage devoid of any hatred and ethnic sentiment.
The development we all are yearning for as a nation can only be achieved through collective efforts of all the regions and all hands must be on deck to achieve the desired result.
The president-elect must assemble his lieutenants devoid of the region and religious sentiments. We are not the giant of Africa by words or size but by our ability to work in unison irrespective of our differences.
The incoming administration must deeply take a stock of the Buhari-led administration and put rigid machinery in place to correct all wrongs for the greater good of our country.
APC must clearly understand that it’s not yet Uhuru, the party must do everything possible and affirmative to give the South Easterner a true sense of belonging in the affairs of this nation.
Both the President and vice president elects must be just to every region and not give room for any form of discrimination. Media, as a watchdog of the society, need not keep quiet to set agenda for good governance.
Fatai Abiodun is an ICT Expert, Journalist, Public Affairs Analyst and the National Publicity Secretary APC Professionals Council
08072464004, albarka200709@yahoo.com
