Elder statesman, Dr. Matthias Oko Offoboche, served as Cross River State deputy governor in the second Republic between October 1979 and December 1983. In this second part of the chat with journalists including Correspondent Bassey Inyang in Calabar, Offoboche speaks on the position of Cross River North Senatorial District with regards to the governorship race in 2015. Excerpts:
What do you think about the north providing acceptable governorship material in 2015?
I want to plead with my brothers and sisters in the South that they should try to create a condition of peace in this state.
Senator Liyel Imoke’s greatest achievement in this state is that he has brought peace to the state. And his greatest legacy in the history of Cross River will be that he has left the state in peace. And to leave this state in peace means that the north must provide the governor.
To do otherwise will be to create chaos. And from all his actions we know that Imoke is not a fool; he has never been known to be a fool. So, he is not going to create a situation where there will be problems after he has left office and he is not going to destroy his main legacy.
Let us forget about rumours. People have a right to contest, but the governor has come out openly, even before his second term election, to say that the next governor in 2015 should come from the north. So, he cannot turn round and eat his words. This is not the Imoke I know, this is not Imoke who is a peaceful man, and this is not Imoke who wants the judgment of history to be in his favour. He will not destroy his legacy permanently.
What is your view about those who argue that democracy is an open contest and therefore, those who are eligible including people from the south are eligible to contest in 2015 to be governor of Cross River State?
The very first election after the military rule was an open contest; anybody from any of the senatorial districts could have become governor. The election crystallised between the north and the south and the south won; so Donald Duke became governor. It does not, therefore, mean that that arrangement can continue. It is a democracy. If anybody wants to stand from the south, nobody can stop him, but he has to win the election.
The PDP has a zoning formula for the sake of peace in the country and it is this zoning formula we are trying to stand on. The south has had it, the central has had it, the PDP now has a duty, both legal and moral, to zone the next governorship of Cross River State to the northern senatorial district.
How do you see the alleged plans by some elements from the north to pursue their ambition to the detriment of the governorship aspiration in the north in 2015?
I have organised several meetings with the north and the decision is unanimous that the north should provide the next governor. There is no question of anybody selling out. The last meeting was on August 10.
I wish you were there to see the reaction of the people. Nobody who is any true son of the north, and indeed we expect the central and the south, will say no to such persons. So, those are rumours and I do not want to comment on rumour.
The north is preparing for the governorship. People asked: ‘Why has nobody come out from the north now?’ It is like a marathon. People are being cautious and at the appropriate time, people will begin to emerge.
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