Voting Against Tinubu In 2027: Northern Elders Forum Political Burden – Minister Of State For Defence
By; AMOS TAUNA, Kaduna
Minister of State for Defence, Bello Matawalle, says anyone seeing President Bola Tinubu as a failure or a weakling is either blind or misguided and unable to see the new Nigeria that is emerging.
Responding to the threat that the North might vote against Tinubu in 2027, the minister described the forum as a “political burden”, saying that Northern Elders Forum (NEF) is not and can never speak for the North.
NEF, through its spokesman, Abdul-Azeez Suleiman, had expressed regrets that the region voted for Tinubu during 2023, stressing that going forward, the region will prioritize unity and consensus in selecting a candidate for the highest office in the land.
According to the minister, he and other leaders would not allow “some elements” to bring Northern region into disrepute and wondered why many people overlooked what he termed “overbearing attitude” of NEF on issues that affect political unity and cohesion of the country.
In a statement on Saturday, the minister stated that the NEF is more of a political burden to Northerners, saying that the group is seeking to erode other people’s rights in order to be recognised or made relevant in the scheme of things despite the failure of their sponsored candidates in the 2023 general elections.
He stressed, “In as much as many have overlooked them in respect of their utterances, it is pertinent to underscore their overbearing attitude on issues that affect political unity and cohesion.
“They cannot offer any positive idea or thought about the future of Northern Nigeria or, indeed, of Nigeria and its unity and togetherness.”
He explained that they all know President Bola Tinubu won the February 2023 presidential election convincingly, asking who is NEF that want to undermine the president’s victory and even threaten to unseat him?
Matawalle observed that the same group of people had intentionally shied away from their responsibility of engendering unity in the North by appreciating the incremental development being brought to the North by Ministers appointed by Tinubu from the North, especially North West, lamenting that the Forum had not deemed it fit to seek audience with Tinubu to discuss issues affecting the Northern region despite the numerous challenges facing the North.
He added that the group is yet to visit any of the ministers dealing with issues of security, agriculture, water resources, police affairs, education, health, budget, foreign affairs or any head of security agencies in the country so far for first hand knowledge of government programs and actions.
He lamented that majority of them are more interested in faulting the government so as to be recognised or accorded some relevance.
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