The Igbo for President Solidarity Congress (IPSC), a political pressure group has expressed support for an Igbo presidency in Nigeria come 2023.
The group made the call during a news conference held on Monday at the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) press centre in Ibadan.
Gfhnews reports that members of the group were Yorubas drawn from across the six South-West states.
Dr Kayode Oshin-Ariyo, IPSC National President, said the group would champion a third force party for Igbo presidency if major political parties failed to field an Igbo presidential candidate in 2023.
He said that they have watched the interest and patriotic concern of individual declaration to support an Igbo president by some elderstatemen from the northern and southern part of Nigeria
“That for the sake of peace, unity, justice and equity, we wholeheartedly support Nigerian president of Igbo extraction come 2023.
“That we state emphatically and without self contradiction that the Yoruba love the peace and prosperity that abound in Nigeria, therefore want to remain in the union.
“That the Yoruba do not want to be president come 2023 general election, having served a wholesale 8 years as Nigeria President and by 2023 as Vice President for another 8 years.
“Between 1999 and 2023, the North would have served as Nigerian President and Vice President for 20 years, South-West for 16 years and South-South for 6 years,” he said.
The IPSC appealed to Nigerians, elder statemen, political parties to political stakeholders and community/religious leader to rally support for the noble agitation of power shift to southeast zone in 2023.
“We believe that a man or woman of Igbo extraction as Nigerian President will restore glory and bring honor to our dear country, to regain her enviable position as giant of Africa,” he said.
Reacting on calls for Yoruba Nation, Oshin-Ariyo said that there was no need for the Yoruba to break away from Nigeria, considering the fact that the region has never been marginalised.
He said that the nation needed not to break up since it enjoyed much in its strength as a united country, adding there won’t be agitation for Biafra once Igbo become the president come 2023.
Dr Alex Anozie, the Eze Ndigbo of Oyo State, said that Nigeria would experience great things as soon as an Igbo man or woman emerged president in 2023.
He described the effort of the group as the right step in the right direction, saying that Igbo people believes in one Nigeria and not a divided country.
“If by the Special grace of God, an Igbo man or woman steps-in in 2023 to become the president of Nigeria, some great and new things will begin to happen in Nigeria.
“We are feeling at home everywhere because we have confidence in Nigeria.
“If there is truth and justice, and fairness in Nigeria, Igbo man will be the last person to think of seceeding away from Nigeria,” he said.
