Mr. Kingsley Fanwo, Kogi State Commissioner for Information, has said that the State Governor, Yahaya Bello was out to challenge the status quo as regards the issue of zoning ahead of the 2023 elections.
Fanwo stated this, Tuesday, while addressing a press conference in Abuja, insisting that zoning of political offices should not be part of the criteria for recruiting leaders.
He said: “In 2023, it is going to change. The zoning may be competence, capacity, patriotism, a unifier, a bridge builder. That is where we are zoning it to. Whether the person is a northerner, Southerner, Igbo, Hausa it does not matter anymore.
“We have been zoning since 1960, are we better off? So, that’s where we are going. And that’s what we have come out to challenge, because it will take a courageous man like Yahaya Bello to challenge and defeat that monster before we can be talking about development.”
Fanwo noted that Bello and his campaign team were ready for the battle ahead and were also determined to defeat the monster called zoning.
The commissioner added: “So, on rotation, we are ready for the battle ahead. It is going to be about capacity and competence. Until we challenge the status quo, that idiosyncratic page must be broken before you can be talking of progressing as a nation, as a people.
“So, it’s no more about rotation. The governor said, I’m going to quote him now. ‘I was born in North Central. I was born an Egbira man. I did not choose to be an Egbira, I did not choose to be a norther. That should not determine criteria for hiring leaders.’”
Fanwo insisted that his principal was not intimidated by the pedigree, profile, experience and exposure of other presidential aspirants, including former Governor of Lagos State, Senator Bola Tinubu, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, former Governor of Imo State, Rochas Okorocha, among others.
