Former Governor of Imo State and Senator representing Imo West District, Owelle Rochas Okorocha has grossed the highest number of votes to emerge the preferred candidate of the Igbo for Nigeria’s Presidency in 2023.
The Minister of State for Education, Hon. Chukwuemeka Nwajiuba, came second polling 7.27% of the votes followed by former President of the Senate, Chief Anyim Pius Anyim and incumbent governor of Ebonyi State, Dave Umahi, who garnered 3.63% of the votes apiece.
Surprisingly, the former governor of Abia State, Chief Orji Uzor Kalu got 1.8% of the votes, the lowest among the six people reported to have been picked by the North as its choice in the event that the presidency should be zoned to the South East in 2023.
The North is reported to have said it would support any of the sixtet namely Senator Rochas Okorocha, Senator Orji Uzor Kalu, Hon. Chukwuemeka Nwajiuba, Senator Anyim Pius Anyim or Gov. Dave Umahi in the event that the country decides to cede the presidency to the South East region.
However, some respondents opposed Okorocha’s nomination while others believed that the North would not concede the Presidency to the Igbo in this lifetime.
They were also respondents who do not want any of the sixtet to be elected President of the country. They constituted 14.54% of the respondents who participated in the vox-pop.
Most of such respondents nominated some other Igbo such as former governor of Anambra State, Mr. Peter Obi, former deputy governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Kingsley Muoghalu; a former Commissioner for finance in Lagos State, Ben Akubueze and Director General, World Trade Organization (WTO), Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala for the plum job.
Yet, a respondent, George Ibecheozor insisted on a constitution amendment that would provide for a level playing field for all ethnic groups to find expression in the polity instead of nominating an Igbo President to serve in the present skewed federal structure.
