By Jude Opara
A founding member of the All Progressives Congress, (APC), Osita Okechukwu, has faulted former Vice President Atiku Abubakar over his recent comment describing zoning as “self-defeating,” insisting that the position amounts to what he called “self-denial.”
Okechukwu, a former Director-General of the Voice of Nigeria, made his remarks on Tuesday while reacting to inquiries from journalists on Atiku’s position on the zoning arrangement in Nigerian politics.
He argued that the former vice president, who he described as one of the major beneficiaries of zoning in the country’s political history, cannot now dismiss the system’s relevance.
According to him, zoning remains an important political convention that promotes national cohesion, inclusion, equity, peace and justice.
“How can one of the foremost beneficiaries of the zoning convention suddenly deny its profound significance in promoting national cohesion, inclusion, equity, peace, and justice?” he queried.
Okechukwu further stated that Atiku’s political trajectory benefited from zoning arrangements, noting that without such structures, his emergence as Vice President would have been unlikely.
He also referenced past political developments, including Atiku’s exit from the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in 2014 after President Goodluck Jonathan emerged as the party’s presidential candidate.
Reacting to Atiku’s argument that it would be unrealistic for a Southern opposition candidate to challenge a sitting Southern president in 2027, Okechukwu described the position as an appeal to identity politics, which he said zoning was originally designed to reduce.
He added that such a view is “regrettable” and not expected from a statesman.
Okechukwu also dismissed Atiku’s claim that the South would have held the presidency for about 18 years in the Fourth Republic by 2027, describing it as selective interpretation of history.
He argued that Northern Nigeria had dominated the country’s leadership for several decades since independence in 1960, insisting that discussions on equity must be based on historical balance rather than “convenient arithmetic.”
