Former Senate President and a one-time Secretary to the Federal Government, Senator Anyim Pius Anyim, was recently received in a private audience by two Nigerian leaders.
Taking to his Facebook page, Anyim wrote: “I met with former President Ibrahim Babangida and former Head of State, General Abdulsalami Abubakar. I consulted with them on my intention to contest for the presidency of our beloved country. Both leaders are rich in vision and deep in the grasp of our history. They were generous with their wise counsels.
“I am further emboldened in the conviction that I can make significant contributions in our collective quest to consolidate democracy, build a stronger and more united Nigeria.
“I feel very enriched and invigorated. Long live Nigeria.”
However, the PDP Presidential Aspirant had said that no geo-political zone of the country can win the presidency without support from other zones.
He was speaking at an event organised by United For Better Nigeria Initiative, with the theme: Imperative of Rotational Presidency.
He explained that though the quest for a president of Igbo extraction is not a legal right but an equitable one, it must be pursued with vigorous persuasion and consensus building with other regions.
He said: “The other angle to this perspective is, whether zoning the presidency to the southeast geo-political zone is a legal right, the answer is no, but morally, there is merit in such a demand. This expectation canvases that the federal character principle has assumed legal backing.
“Just like the rotation of the presidency is not captured in the Constitution, neither is the Geo-political zoning arrangement.”
Senator Anyim called on the group which is advocating for a power shift to the southeast to double its effort by strategically engaging other Nigerians through advocacy and dialogue on the need for power to shift to the southeast, adding that in democracy, power is not given in the asking but through deliberate and strategic engagement for mass support.
