JONATHAN IS SERVING SOUTH-SOUTH'S TURN AT THE PRESIDENCY - OBASANJO.

"My party, the PDP, believes in what is in the country’s constitution, which indicates that there must be federal character reflected in all appointments and elective positions. What the PDP said was that for now, where there is a president from one section of the country, who has had his term, whenever the term ends, either by himself through resignation, by the constitution through impeachment or by God through death, the next president should come from the other part of the country". - Olusegun Obasanjo. Icheoku says any correct interpretation of what Olusegun Obasanjo said concerning what amounts to a section's term at the presidency of Nigeria seems to suggest, by necessary implication, that the death of President Umaru Yar'Adua effectively brought to an end the Northern Nigeria's turn at the presidency; hence the rightful rotation back to President Goodluck Jonathan's South-South section? 

According to Obasanjo, any section of the country which has had its term, whenever that term ends either by act of God such as death, then the next president should come from another part of the country. The implication is that President Umaru Yar'Adua died with Northern Nigeria's turn at the presidency hence the rotation of the presidency back to President Jonathan of the South-South? So assuming that as Chairman Board of Trustees of the Peoples Democratic Party that Obasanjo candidly spoke on behalf of the PDP, it would mean therefore that it is not the number of years each section serves as president that is the controlling authority but the presentment or appearance of service, no matter how trivial and ephemeral? If this were truly the case, Icheoku asks, where then is the justice and fairness that one section of the country stayed in power for eight long years and the other for less than three years and that is it? Or that a moribund weakling that practically had few years to live on this earth was imposed by a contriving Obasanjo as that other section's candidate, knowing fully well that he will not live long enough to serve out that section's full eight years in office and effectively provide sectional representation for that section. 

Icheoku thinks something is not right with this interpretation of the PDP's constitution as rendered by Aremu Olusegun Obasanjo; otherwise it will be susceptible to frequent abuse as an outgoing president can easily engineer the emergence of a dying incompetent from the other section to succeed him in order for power to quickly rotate back to his more favored section. This skewered interpretation of the PDP constitution as given by Obasanjo is fraught with danger of abuse and a rightfully frightening resistance by any short-changed section. The provision should be more properly re-worded and amended, to expressly state and specifically provide for a term definite and not a person, as the controlling authority of a sections's term at the presidency. The new provision should read "every section of the country is entitled to eight full years in office" and not otherwise construed or interpreted. So in case of a 'banana-peel syndrome' or any other intervening circumstance such as death that frustrates a particular candidate from completing his/her section's eight years term, that section should still be able to complete it through one of their own person and not to have their allotted term fly away to another section. Even if a section prefers or chooses to have an eight person-presidents during their eight years term of office, to serve one year each respectively, so be it; but equity, justice and fairness demand that there should be equal time at the presidency for each section. Alternatively, let such an entitled section, which will produce the incoming president, be allowed to chose or nominate their own candidate of choice and not have it done by the outgoing president or the proxy of some other impostor who does not truly represent the section or their interest. Fairness demands that if every section should produce the president, that every section should also be allowed an equal amount of time to sojourn at the presidency; and this should not in anyway be shortchanged by any technicalities or such unforeseen event as an act of God - the death of the president. 

But be it as it may, Olusegun Obasanjo has once again thrown a new spanner in the wheels of Nigeria political question 2015 and is now either calling President Goodluck Jonathan a liar when he declared that he will serve only one term or there is an undisclosed hidden agenda by Obasanjo's cabal to make President Jonathan continue in office after 2015, under the guise of serving out South-South's eight years turn at the presidency. Political fork-speaking and manoeuvring is not peculiar to Nigerian politicians and the fact that politicians say and do anything to get elected notwithstanding, it will be in the best interest of justice and peace that parties stick to their pre-election 2011 talking-points when 2015 arrives and not unnecessarily overheat the polity or unreasonably disturb the peace of the land with their pursuit of their selfish interests. The Igbo South-East is anxiously waiting to produce the Nigerian president in 2015 and as a bargain, did not field any candidate but supported President Jonathan's election 2011 wholly and therefore must not be dribbled again come 2015. But whatever happens, Icheoku says, that Nigerians particularly the Igbo South East are primed and waiting; and will react accordingly  when 2015 comes. Until then let Nigerians be vigilant and wary of Obasanjo, neither completely ignoring nor too seriously taking his antics; admitted the man Olusegun Aremu Okikilemo Matthew Obasanjo is capable of always causing great mischief!