Atiku’s One-Term Presidency, How It Favours South/East – Dokpesi

PDP’s presidential hopeful Atiku Abubakar is flaunting a unique selling point—thanks to his technical committee—as he consults across the country before declaring for the 2023 race.

If elected, the former vice president will rule for a term.

Raymond Dokpesi, the media baron who heads the technical committee, stated this in Umuahia, Abia, on Monday.

Dokpesi insisted Atiku, from the northeast, is the right person to wrestle power from the APC.

And he is engaging in that battle of his political life not to only win and just spend four years in office. He has a plan.

Dokpesi said the PDP and the southeast have to give the north another chance so Atiku’s plan can pan out well for the southeast

“Our party believes in rotation of the office of president between the north and south for two-term of eight years,” he said, launching into the most recent political history and PDP’s unwritten rotational presidency understanding.

According to him, it was the agreement that produced the  late Umaru Ya’Adua, and former President Goodluck Jonathan who took over after Yar’ Adua died in office, and completed his own first term of four years in 2015.

The north would not tolerate yet another term Jonathan demanded.

“So we went into the election with a divided house and we lost,” Dokpesi said.

He said it is believed that the north-east and south-east are the two geo-political zones that have not produced a president in Nigeria.

“We felt that Atiku, coming from the north-east, is a strong candidate for the job.”

And by implication, his single term will work things out for the southeast presidential bid to succeed.

Many Nigerians watching the preparations for the 2023 presidential election are complaining of old age as a factor that my not favour many of the hold-overs in Nigerian politics.

Atiku was vice president for eight years, and has contested the presidency at the party levels and the polls for four times.

His likely rival and APC national leader goverened Lagos for eight years, and has remained a fixture in the national politics ever since, brokering power and installing candidates.