Senator Dino Melaye, the spokesperson of the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, has described the first President of Nigeria, Nnamdi Azikiwe and first premier of the Western Region, Obafemi Awolowo as ‘regional champions’.
Melaye in an interview on a national TV said both leaders played regional politics and were unsuccessful in their attempts to be president of the country. He said the PDP and its presidential candidate are not bothered by the growing popularity of the presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, who he described as a regional candidate.
The former senator also opined that President Muhammadu Buhari ran as a regional champion on three occasions before forming a merger with others to win the 2015 presidential election.
“Nigerians are wiser, they know the truth. Nigerians know who will rescue them. Nigerians know who will deliver for them. Nigerians know that no regional champion has ever been president of this country. Awolowo was a fantastic leader with every sense of humility and order, very refined man but because he was playing regional politics, he never became the president of this country. Azikiwe played regional card, he never became president of this country. Buhari on three attempts as regional champion did not make the presidency until he ran on a national platform, calling Saraki, Atiku and Tinubu before he won,” he said.
However, the claim of Melaye is faulty as Azikiwe, was the first president of Nigeria. Considered a driving force behind the nation’s independence, Azikiwe came to be known as the “father of Nigerian Nationalism”
Awolowo was the first premier of the Western Region and later federal commissioner for finance, and vice chairman of the Federal Executive Council during the Nigerian Civil War. He was thrice a major contender for the highest office in the country.
