2027 Presidency: Group Lauds Major Parties For Adhering To Zoning

A political pressure group, the Advocacy for Rotational Leadership (TAROL) has said the decision by the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC) and the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to zone their presidential tickets to the South is a step in the right direction.

Speaking at a meeting on Thursday in Abuja, TAROL national coordinator, Prince Ene Okon, said that zoning the 2027 presidency to the South will promote unity, balance, fairness and political stability in a multi-regional political setting like Nigeria.

Okon urged all other political parties to zone their presidential tickets to the South so as to entrench and sustain a strong culture of rotating the presidency between the South and the North to strike a balance.

He said, “It is also very important that in rotating the presidency between the North and South, all the six geo-political zones should be allowed to take turns to clinch parties’ presidential tickets.

“To this end, it will be fair and proper for all political parties to zone the 2032 presidency to the North Central or North East, as the North West has had more than a fair share.”

He further advised political parties to rotate their tickets among the three senatorial districts at the state level for all to have a sense of belonging.

The TAROL coordinator expressed concern that in some states only a particular area has been reserving the governorship to the neglect of other constituent parts.

“For example, in Benue State, the majority Tiv ethnic nationality has held on to the governorship since 1999 without due consideration for the Idoma people in the southern senatorial district of the state. In Kogi State, the Central Senatorial District got the governorship by a stroke of fate, as the dominant Igala ethnic group in the Kogi East Senatorial District held sway from 1999 to 2015.

“More so, states like Kwara, Borno, Yobe and Adamawa are yet to have the governorship go round their three senatorial districts. We believe we can change this narrative to give all a sense of belonging. We give kudos to Cross River State, Ekiti State and others who have held on to the rotation principle,” he said.