The Yoruba Council of Elders (YCE) on Sunday said the next president of Nigeria could emerge from any part of the country during the 2023 general elections.
The Secretary-General of YCE, Dr. Kunle Olajide, said this during an interview with reporters in Ibadan at the weekend.
He said it was never the turn of any tribe in the country.
According to him, “YCE is not interested in the 2023 presidency coming from anywhere. All we want is somebody who has the capability, capacity and character to lead and unite this country again so that we can have peace and go for development. The president can come from any part of Nigeria. What are we talking about? Some people have governors as neighbours and they have never benefitted anything from them.
“In other words, we want a new constitution for Nigeria. We need a president that will believe in the new constitution. This is because the present constitution cannot do it. We should not deceive ourselves, we should focus on who wants to become the president in 2023. We will present our terms for Yorubaland before him and we will sign documents. The Atiku Group visited me at Efon-Alaaye and I hosted them for one night. They saw me and we discussed this thing until about 3am before they went to bed.
“For us in YCE, this country has been too badly polarised. So, we need somebody, who will come and inspire confidence in all Nigerians and give every Nigerian a sense of belonging, no matter where he comes from. The character, capacity and the track record of the person that wants to become president matter to us a lot.”
While speaking on restructuring, he said: “For me, it is half measure and superficial. The new constitution that we will all sit down together and decide the powers that will be vested in the states and the federal government is the best thing.
“If the presidential aspirant is from Yorubaland and he has all the qualities enumerated, why not? It is not that he will not compete. Let everybody aspiring to become president come out. There are competent and capable people all over Nigeria. Let them come and show us their credentials.”
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