The Niger Delta Ex-agitators Forum (NDEF) has condemned calls for the impeachment of the President of the Senate, Senator Godswill Akpabio, by some Northern groups.
Addressing journalists in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital on Wednesday, NDEF leader, Dr. Paulinus Alban, said the calls for Akpabio’s impeachment came barely a few weeks after demands were made by some Northern groups for the removal of President Bola Tinubu.
Alban, who called on the anti-Akpabio groups to stop their alleged sinister plan to undermine Southern leadership, said Northern leaders were always allowed to complete their tenures in office.
He said: “Today, we, the Niger Delta Ex-Agitators Forum, stand united to raise our voices against a disturbing trend that seeks to marginalize and continually oppress the Southern region of our beloved country as the goose that lays the golden egg.
“We recall the Presidency of His Excellency, Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, a Southerner who was denied the opportunity to serve a second term due to the concerted efforts of Northern opposition forces. Now, with barely a year into the administration of His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, we are witnessing variant agitations from some Northern groups calling for his removal.
“This pattern of undermining Southern leadership is not only unjust but also deeply destabilizing.In stark contrast, we cannot ignore the fact that despite the significant security challenges and other pressing issues that plagued the administration of His Excellency, Muhammadu Buhari, he remained in power for a two-term tenure of eight years, largely unchallenged.
“Going forward, this glaring disparity in the treatment of Southern leaders if we are to preserve the unity and stability of our nation must be put to an end immediately.
“When a Southerner occupies the esteemed position of Senate President, there is a swift and relentless call for their impeachment, often orchestrated by interests from the Northern region.
“The recent call for the impeachment of His Excellency, Senator Godswill Obot Akpabio, the President of the 10th Senate, is yet another example of this troubling trend having survived several threats of impeachment and media slander sponsored by politicians from a particular section of the country within his first year in office.
“It is a pattern that we, the ex-agitators in particular, and the people of the Niger Delta Region in general, cannot and will not tolerate. Nigeria belongs to all of us, and the Senate Presidency position must be a symbol of national unity, not a weapon of regional domination.”