As the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) mulls whether it should discard zoning or not, the Director of the Saraki Campaign Council, Osaro Onaiwu, has said an open field remains the best option for the party to return to power in 2023.
Onaiwu said this when former Military President General Ibrahim Babangida played host to three presidential aspirants of the PDP in Minna, Niger State.
The presidential aspirants who were in Minna include Senator Bukola Abubakar Saraki, Governors Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto and Bala Mohammed of Bauchi State.
In a statement on Friday, Onaiwu said the abysmal performance of the present APC government at the centre was indicative of the failure of zoning to address governance issues in the country.
“This country since 1999 has pretentiously claimed that zoning was the elixir to bad governance and maladministration, but the records are glaring. Look at the present administration, it has failed to secure Nigeria and promote prosperity,” Onaiwu said.
He said what is needed at this point is to allow all qualified aspirants on the platform of the party to run and let the delegates decide who should fly the flag of the party.
“Nigeria needs the party and individual that can promote national unity, unite voices and engender prosperity and economic wellbeing of Nigerians. This can only be achieved through an open field and not narrow the race to a particular zone which might just throw up not the best qualified,” the statement reads.
General Babangida while speaking after the meeting, said; “I enjoyed meeting with you because I like what I have heard. Your belief in the unity of this country is paramount in most of our discussions. Your belief in having a better Nigeria featured very prominently.
“You made my day. What you talked about is Nigeria, Nigeria and Nigeria. I want you to keep it up, for the benefit of this country and generations yet unborn. What you are doing is good, this is how the country should develop, consultations, compromises and so on, this will make a better country and this is what you are trying to do.”
