Nation
2023 Presidency: Group Makes Case For Southern Region
A political group, the South-West Agenda (SWAGA) for “Bola Tinubu 2023” said the zoning arrangement for the nation’s presidential ticket should be moved to the Southern region to give every part of the country a sense of belonging.
Sen. Adedayo Adeyeye, the National Chairman of the group, made this known on Monday during a sensitisation parley with traditional rulers in the Ikeja and Lagos Divisions of the state.
Adeyeye, a former Minister of State for Works, said if the presidential ticket was zoned to the South, it would bring unity among regions in the South and the North.
He pointed out that anybody could come out from the South as the zoning would not be meant for only the South-West.
“The group believes that the principle of rotation between the North and the South should be sustained in order to give every part of the country a sense of belonging.
“We must forget our divide in terms of ethnicity and come together. There are three geopolitical zones in the South and each of them is qualified to have the president.
“If the president is zoned to the south, it means anybody can come out from the south because the zoning to the south is not meant for the South-West alone.
“However, we are saying that there is someone in the south who is highly acceptable in all parts of the country.
“Even though every part of the country will still present their candidates but for now we have put the best foot forward,” he said.
Adeyeye said the group was happy that Northerners were also clamouring that the power should be moved to the South.
The senator noted that they had been able to prove to the doubting Thomases that Asiwaju Bola Tinubu was acceptable by the generality of the people in the South-West.
“We have heard what the traditional rulers have said in all the six states in the zone. Now, we want to move to the other geopolitical zones.
“The work we are doing now is already encouraging similar movements in all the geopolitical zones in the country.
The Secretary-General, SWAGA, Mr Bosun Oladele, said the traditional rulers were the custodian of the people and they have the mandate to oversee the affairs of their people.
Oladele said they came to pay homage to the traditional rulers because they could not do anything without putting them into consideration.
Responding, the Head of the Ikeja Division of Obas, Oba Lasisi Gbadamosi, Onigando of Igando, described Tinubu, as the most qualified presidential candidate.
Gbadamosi said the 65 traditional rulers in the Ikeja Division had endorsed Tinubu, saying that God would give him the grace to attain the position.
The Onigando said Tinubu would emerge as president, and assured the group of the traditional rulers total support for him.
Also, the Oba of Lagos, Rilwan Akiolu, said Tinubu, a former Lagos ghovernor, was the best candidate to succeed President Muhammadu Buhari.
Akiolu, represented by Oba Tijani Akiloye, the Ajiran of Ajiranland in Eti-Osa, said all the traditional rulers in the Lagos Division were in full support of his campaign.
The team had on Sunday visited the traditional rulers in the Badagry area to seek their blessings and endorsement for the APC National leader.
In a statement signed by the Project Coordinator, Prof Nenibarini Zabbey, to commemorate the anniversary, HYPREP described the anniversary as a significant milestone in Nigeria’s environmental restoration efforts, noting that the project has made remarkable progress in implementing the recommendations of the landmark UNEP report released on August 4, 2011.
The UNEP report had revealed extensive oil pollution across Ogoniland, severe environmental degradation, and serious public health risks resulting from decades of petroleum operations. It also recommended an initial $1 billion fund to commence the cleanup of the affected communities.
According to HYPREP, the Federal Government formally launched the Ogoni clean-up in 2016, while the Project Coordination Office was established in 2017 to drive the implementation of UNEP’s recommendations.
Zabbey said the current administration has continued to prioritise the project under the Renewed Hope Agenda.
Providing an update on the cleanup, the Project Coordinator disclosed that 30 of the 65 contaminated sites identified by UNEP have been fully remediated, while work is ongoing at several medium- and high-risk locations. It also stated that more than 1.5 million mangrove seedlings have been planted as part of what it described as the world’s largest restoration of oil-degraded mangroves, with over 1,000 hectares of shoreline already rehabilitated.
Zabbey further revealed that 49 Ogoni communities have been connected to potable water schemes through multiple water projects and booster stations aimed at providing safe drinking water across the region.
In the health sector, he said the 100-bed Ogoni Specialist Hospital in Kpite and the 43-bed Cottage Hospital in Buan are nearing completion, adding that several existing health facilities have been upgraded with modern medical equipment, while five ambulances have been donated to improve emergency healthcare services. The Project Coordinator also disclosed that a three-year human health biomonitoring study is being conducted in collaboration with the World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC).
On economic empowerment, Zabbey stated that the Project has created more than 8,000 direct jobs and trained thousands of Ogoni youths and women in various vocational and technical skills, including software development, cybersecurity, aviation, commercial diving, seafaring, mechatronics, and creative arts. The project also reported awarding scholarships to more than 1,000 students, providing grants to small businesses, and supporting persons living with special needs through skills acquisition programmes.
The statement further highlighted ongoing legacy projects, including the Ogoni Power Project and the Centre of Excellence for Environmental Restoration, which it said is about 96 per cent complete. HYPREP also welcomed the recent designation of the Ogoni Wetland as a Ramsar Site of International Importance and pledged to continue promoting biodiversity conservation and sustainable management of the ecosystem.
Marking the anniversary, Zabbey said the progress achieved over the past 15 years demonstrates the collective commitment of government, development partners, stakeholders, and local communities to restoring Ogoniland. He called for renewed collaboration to sustain the cleanup effort, promote environmental sustainability, and support the long-term development of the region. 3