…speaks on his presidential ambition
Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi state has revealed how his intervention staved off a brewing crisis between the North and South; an imminent crisis capable of destabilizing the country. He also spoke on his presidential ambition, which he said is gathering momentum and on the controversial issue of zoning.
The governor said this at an interactive session with editors in Abuja at the weekend, revealing how the peace deal brokered by him did not go down with some people. “I was not invited to broker the peace deal, which invariably has saved the country from a near civil war. I intervened because of the tension that was building up in the North due to killing of some traders and destruction of their means of livelihood in the South. The Northern youth calmed down and food supply to the South was restored”.
In the aftermath of the Shasa killing of Hausa traders, and the resolve of Hausa traders to stop the supply of food to the South, tension had been building up before the governor’s intervention.
Governor Bello who said his action was backed by the presidency, also revealed that a few people from the Villa and among his colleagues were not happy with the outcome of his intervention, which in any case calmed frayed nerves.
“Somebody drew my attention to the fact that Nigeria was heading to the precipice. Food stuff and cows became so expensive in the South. A cow that is about N200,000 in the North could cost as high as N800,000 in the South. The price of tomatoes too rose. Since I’m in touch with the youth of the North, when I heard of their mobilization and that they were probably being sponsored, I had to broker peace. Like such other crises in Nigeria, before you know it, they would say the Igbo and Yoruba in the North are being targeted; such a notion can lead to a conflict that can consume us”.
On his 2023 presidential ambition, the governor said, though he is waiting on God before taking a decision, he decried the idea of zoning even as he emphasized that the AP has no zoning arrangement. He advised the party hierarchy to jettison zoning in order for the best to come out.
On the possibility of winning if fielded, the governor said: “Winning the primaries as a governor or as an aspirant is not the problem. If there is level-playing field, I will defeat anybody. I will defeat whoever will confront me on the field, whether direct or indirect primaries or at the convention, If I’m on the ballot for 2023. In fact, I’m going to record votes that we have never recorded in the history of Nigeria, the margin is what we will be talking about”.
On zoning in the party, he said, “there is no zoning arrangement in our party, the APC. None that I know and there is none in our constitution. Even if there is, how has zoning helped us as a nation. For once, let us look for who can fix Nigeria, then we can talk of zoning, for balance and to satisfy political interests”, Governor Bello said.