2023: Kogi, Ebonyi Speakers fight over who should be President, Vice between Yahaya Bello, Umahi

Following the submission by the Speaker of Kogi State House of Assembly, Mathew Kolawole, that Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi is the best candidate to lead Nigeria come 2023, with Ebonyi State Governor, David Umahi the most preferred Vice Presidential candidate, his Ebonyi state counterpart, Rt. Hon. Francis Nwifuru, says he should look it the other way round.

Kolawole, who led seven of his colleagues to solicit the support of their counterparts in Ebonyi State, had said that the North-Central and South-East regions deserve to produce the next President and Vice President of Nigeria as they were the most marginalised since the return of democracy in 1999.

According to him, Governor David Umahi’s decision to join the All Progressives Congress, was in the best interest of the South- East.

He said, “Your people will benefit more. We in Kogi House have a robust relationship with the executive arm. For best functionality you need cordiality with other arms. Our governor is the youngest and doing well, including in the area of security. We have borders with nine states.

“We have passed a vote of confidence on him. We went further to look at the geopolitical zone in the country. We passed the resolution that our governor should be the first to contest the presidency in 2023.”

But in his respond, the Ebonyi State house of Assembly speaker, Hon. Francis Nwifuru, said, the Ebonyi state Governor, David Umahi should be supported to lead the country, while Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi can still be his Vice.

“I appeal that if the party zones the presidential position to the South-East zone, the Governor of Ebonyi State, David Umahi should be supported to rule the country, while Governor Bello can still be supported to be his Vice President,” Nwifuru said.