Bayo Onanuga, the Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Information and Strategy, has appealed to northern politicians to respect the unwritten principle of power rotation and allow the South serve out its eight years, following late former President Muhammadu Buhari’s two consecutive terms.
Onanuga, who spoke in an interview with Trust Radio, dismissed the alleged marginalisation of the North as lies motivated by politics.
He argued that some politicians are after the President because of his Southern roots, insisting that the alleged northern marginalisation is predicated on false data.
The presidential spokesman said the claim that North has been shortchanged in appointments or developmental projects under the Tinubu administration is incorrect, describing the complaints from the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) as a veiled attempt to undermine Southern presidency.
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He stressed that Northern politicians should wait for their turn just as the South waited during the tenure of the late Buhari.
“This President is a Nigerian. He deserves the same two terms that Buhari had. Let’s not sacrifice the country for personal ambition,” he said.
Onanuga says lopsided appointment claim lacks proof
Regarding the alleged lopsidedness in appointment, he said the claim that the South has been more favoured lacks evidence, challenging critics to present data rather than rely on broad generalisations.
Onanuga also condemned the purported neglect of infrastructure in the North, explaining that the Tinubu administration inherited a backlog of incomplete or abandoned projects.
“You need to get your statistics right. It’s all political mischief designed to undermine the President. There are bad roads across the country, not just in the North,” Onanuga stated.
He defended the President’s performance in the area of security, noting that significant progress has been made.
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“The National Security Adviser, Chief of Defence Staff, and the two Defence Ministers are all Northerners. Places like Birnin Gwari and Igabi (in Kaduna) are now safer. I drove from Kaduna to Abuja without incident, a journey that was once unthinkable,” he added.
