The National Vice President of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Damian Okeke-Ogene, has disclosed that the Southeast will not support the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar.
Okeke-Ogene said Atiku lost the support of the Southeast following his role in jettisoning zoning in PDP.
He said Atiku would have been considered a hero if he had supported the zoning of the presidential ticket to the Southeast.
In a statement, the Ohanaeze Vice President said Atiku should have allowed the rotation of power to the Southeast because of the sacrifices the Southeast made to him in the 2019 elections.
Okeke-Ogene said, “If conscience is anything to go by, the two major political parties, couldn’t have field candidates from any other zone other than Southeast. Igbos are being persecuted by Buhari today because they gave Atiku during his last election 95% votes.
“What Obasanjo and others are doing today is what we had expected from Atiku who happens to be our in-law. That’s why it’s not good to vote according to sentiments.
“Atiku would have known that the entire Southeast sacrificed their votes and interest for him and see this election as a payback time. He wouldn’t have engineered and funded the no-zoning campaign because we voted for him based on zoning.
“Atiku would have been the greatest hero of our times if he had been at the forefront of championing its turn of the Southeast.”
Some political stakeholders believed that the frontline political parties should have zoned their presidential tickets to the Southeast.
They had pointed out that all zones had produced the presidency except the Southeast; hence 2023 should be the turn of the region.
Despite these agitations, Atiku emerged as the PDP’s flag bearer.