Pius Anyim, a presidential hopeful on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party has assured Nigerians that no man in Nigeria’s seat of power would dictate to the country who the next president will be. Anyim said any Nigerian with the impression that some inner caucus arrangement would produce the president in 2023 should come off it.
He noted that he would have his first shot at the presidential seat in 2023 and would win it.
The former President of the Senate spoke while featuring on a programme, Political Roundtable, on Lagos Mainland FM.
Asked by a caller how he intended to deal with the ‘cabal’ in Aso Rock to become the next president, Anyim said, “Maybe you still have the impression that it is Aso Rock that will ordain who the next president will be. I do not share that view. “I think with the new Electoral Act, people have more confidence that their votes will count. “Whether cabal or no cabal, I am going to give my first shot at the presidency and I will win.”
Asked further if he would have a cabal in Aso Rock if he emerged victorious at the 2023 polls, he said, “I want to say that I will run an inclusive government and the principles of democracy would be deployed. “I am a young man with all respect and I have a whole lot of energy, so there is nothing to leave for anybody to do for me differently. I will be hands-on on the job and get the job done. It is when you are not hands-on before that you allow some people to come.” Speaking on zoning, Anyim reiterated that it was only fair that the PDP zoned its presidential ticket to the south, which should, in turn, micro-zone it to the South-East.
According to him, if the PDP decides not to follow its constitution, it would, in the long run, weaken the system which would no longer have the power to protect its members.