A former Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN Prof. Kingsley Moghalu, has slammed the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Atiku Abubakar over his statement that Nigeria doesn’t need Igbo or Yoruba to be president.
Atiku on Saturday during an interactive sanction With Arewa Joint Committee held in Kaduna State, claimed that Northerners do not need Igbo or Yoruba presidency in the forthcoming election.
Atiku’s appalling utterance has continued to stir backlashes from concerned Nigerians across the country.
Reacting on his verified Twitter handle, the former CBN Deputy Governor said the comment was a “direct appeal to divisive ethnic sentiment and a denigration of the largest ethnic groups in Southern Nigeria.
“I was very disappointed to view the video clip of H.E. Atiku Abubakar @atiku, a former Vice-President of Nigeria, telling an audience in Kaduna that what the North needs is a northerner to be President, and not a Yoruba or Igbo candidate.
“All candidates in the 2023 presidential election must avoid ethnic or other divisive sentimental appeals”.
Moghalu tasked Atiku to withdraw the statement and tender an apology to Nigerians