As various political parties in Nigeria prepare for the process of nomination of Presidential candidates ahead of the 2023 elections, leaders of some Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) have recommended Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi State, to balance political equations.

The CSOs made up of professionals, youths and women, made this known in Abuja during a one-day intellectual discourse on the future of Nigeria’, with the theme, “A glance into Nigeria’s Future and Governor Yahaya Bello’s developmental politics: 2023 in perspective”.

One of the guest speakers and a former Director-General of National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS), Kuru, Jos, Prof. Ahmed Danfulani, said time had come for true leadership in Nigeria that would be all inclusive, regardless of region, religion and status.

“Governor Yahaya Bello’s example in leadership is noteworthy. I see a lot that distinguishes him as a leader of repute in many areas.

“His approach to religion and ethnicity in a state as ethnically and religiously sensitive is one.

“The emphasis on gender sensitivity is also worthy of mention. His approach to addressing the security challenges in the state is also top-notch.

“Governor Yahaya Bello has set examples that should be amplified and used as a yardstick in assessing candidates that have signified interest in leading this country. This is what I urge all of us to be strategic about.

“At the back of our minds, let us have it that we must be clear about the qualities the next President of Nigeria should possess. This is on the heels that stepping into the shoes of President Muhammadu Buhari is a tedious task.

“The emphasis should not be about zoning, ethnicity or religion. It must also not be about who has an enormous war chest. It should be about competence and strategy for addressing the challenges in the country.

“From 2023, we hold the ace to ensure that we must get it right, and the emphasis should be about developmental politics, as encapsulated in the theme of this meeting.

“The reference to Governor Yahaya Bello is fitting and germane. I believe that Nigeria has come of age, and zoning or ethnicity should no longer dictate how we are governed”, Prof. Danfulani said.

Dr. Uzah Thomas, the Dean of Student Affairs, Kwararafa University, Wukari, in his presentation, stressed that the nation needed to learn from the politics of all inclusiveness and progressive development, which the Kogi Governor was known for.

“Upon assuming office by Governor Yahaya Bello in 2015, he was confronted by a myriad of challenges that seemed insurmountable with an increasing rate of despondency amongst the state’s indigenes.

“According to available records, it was discovered that the Yahaya Bello administration was confronted by a hydra-headed monster that held down the state.

“All sectors of the state’s economy were in an absolute state of despair. Therefore it became a herculean task for the new administration to meet its social obligations to the state’s indigenes due to past maladministration in the state”, Dr. Uzah added.

A Chieftain of All Progressives Congress, APC and member of the Board of Trustees of the party, Chief Sam Nkire has asked the hierarchy to resolve the on-going crisis in Abia State chapters before the February 26, 2022 National Convention.

In a statement he personally signed in Abuja on Tuesday, Nkire appealed to the National Care-taker Committee of the party to re-visit the cases of the various States with genuine grievances, including Abia, with a view to accommodating them in the scheme of things.

He said: “It would be a tragedy to have a great multitude of members of the party from Abia State excluded from the event which would legitimize party structures from the National, State, Local Government and wards across the country.

“It is a national duty to draw the attention of the National Working Committee (NWC) of the ruling party to States where there seems to be uneasy calm.

“I would continue to play my role as an arbitrator and mediator in disputes and ensure the enforcement of discipline in accordance with the constitution of the All Progressives Congress.

“The leadership of the party should do whatever it could to win over most of the aggrieved States. I am an ardent believer in the supremacy of party but I also believe that party should maintain the highest standard of morality, discipline and equity at all times”.

Nkire called on other party leaders, members of the Board of Trustees and the National Caucus in the various States not to shy away from their role as, “the conscience, the soul and the sanctity of the party, as we match to a more resounding victory in 2023”.