The Chairman, Senate Committee on Army, Senator Ali Ndume, has said that any attempt to zone the All Progressives Congress’s (APC) presidential ticket to the north would be tantamount to a third term after President Muhammadu Buhari’s second term in office.
While addressing journalists at a roundtable organised by the Correspondents’ Chapel, Nigerian Union of Journalists, FCT Council, on Saturday, the lawmaker representing Borno South in the Senate, said it would be against the party’s constitution for the north to produce the next presidential candidate.
Senator Ndume said in the spirit of fairness, justice and equity, any part of the country’s south should produce the next presidential candidate for the APC.
He said: “I’m against APC producing its presidential candidate from the north. The APC presidential candidate should come from the south. I have said it before and will still say it again that if we have a northerner as APC presidential candidate, to me, it is tantamount to third-term and it is not constitutional.
“The (APC) constitution says the president shall serve two terms and we said then that the north should serve two terms. If you say the North should produce the presidential candidate again, it means you are going for third-term, which is not fair and I believe in fairness, justice and equality.
Let candidate from the south, and that means, south-south, southeast and south-west, clinch the ticket. For the south-east, let me say, for example, you want to be the head of this house and you are calling for the division of the house, will it work?
“And I think the southeast needs to think about it. That is what is creating the rumour for the northerners to even say they want to be the president again. If you want to be president of Nigeria, you must believe in the unity of Nigeria. I support the candidate to come anywhere from the south.”
On the ravaging insecurity, Senator Ndume lamented that troops at war front are ill-equipped to tackle the challenges, and stressed the need for the federal government to ensure that the armed forces have what it takes to fight insecurity, which included the security agencies being well funded.
Also, the lawmaker agreed that there was nothing wrong with the Federal Government hiring mercenaries and Special Forces from foreign countries to help combat insecurity.
“I don’t see what is wrong in asking for help when you are overwhelmed,” he added.
