In June 2022, Bola Ahmed Tinubu stood before a crowd in Abeokuta and delivered one of the most politically potent declarations of the Fourth Republic: “Emi Lokan”, “It is my turn.”
It was not just a cry of ambition but a demand for what he believed was due to him from the ruling establishment which he instrumentaly midwifed. It was the culmination of years of loyalty, sacrifice, political strategy, and kingmaking. Tinubu went for the jugular, took on the APC establishment that sought to derail his ambition, and reminded Nigerians that he had helped birth the Buhari presidency.
Today, Tinubu is President.
Twenty-six months after that defiant declaration, he presides over Africa’s most populous nation, proof that in Nigeria’s cutthroat politics, determination, audacity, strategy, and unity can yield results.
The question, therefore, is this: if “Emi Lokan” could work for Tinubu and the South West, why can’t “Igbo Lokan” , “Igbo ka oruru” “It is the turn of the South East”, work too?
Nigeria’s elite consensus has long operated on a tacit North West–South West alliance, which has traded power back and forth with occasional detours, Yar’Adua’s untimely death leading to Jonathan’s emergence, being the most notable disruption.
And now, we are again witnessing a consolidation of that same alliance: a South West President supported by a reluctant North, with whispers already circulating that 2031 will return power to the North for another 8-year stretch. If this trajectory holds, the South East will be locked out of the presidency until at least 2039, by which time many of its most competent politicians will have either aged out or bowed out.
The consequences of this exclusion are not just political. They are psychological and existential. A people excluded from national leadership are more vulnerable to secessionist rhetoric, underdevelopment, and loss of national identity. The South East is a major contributor to Nigeria’s economy, dominating trade, enterprise, and education metrics, yet remains treated like a political orphan.
Yet today, some South East politicians and governors are already pledging loyalty to President Tinubu for 2027, campaigning for a second term that offers the zone nothing in return. These same individuals could not negotiate any meaningful stake for the South East under Buhari’s eight-year rule and have little to show from two years under Tinubu. What is their excuse now?
This is why we must ask: What are the viable options to guarantee a South East presidency, or at the very least, vice presidency, in this generation’s lifetime?
The Facts: A Region Shut Out of Power
Since the return of democracy in 1999, the South East has remained the only geopolitical zone yet to produce a President or Vice President. Here is the hard data:
South West: President (Obasanjo, 1999–2007), Vice President (Osinbajo, 2015–2023), President again (Tinubu, 2023–). Total: 10 years and counting as President, 8 years as VP.
North West: President (Yar’Adua, 2007–2010; Buhari, 2015–2023), Vice President (Atiku, 1999–2007). Total: 11 years as President, 8 years as VP.
South South: President (Jonathan, 2010–2015), Vice President (2007–2010). Total: 5 years as President, 3 years as VP.
North Central: Brief acting roles and VP (Sambo). Total: 8 years as VP.
North East: Vice President (Atiku and now Shettima). 10 years as VP.
South East: Zero. Not even once.
This exclusion is not incidental, it is systematic and structural. Yet, it is inexcusable.
A History of Sacrifice: The South East Has Always played along in the interest of a united Nigeria.
What makes this marginalisation even more tragic is that the South East has consistently sacrificed its own in support of national unity and stability.
In 1979, the South East supported Shehu Shagari, a Fulani man, over the great Zik of Africa, Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe.
In 1999 and 2003, it backed Olusegun Obasanjo, a Yoruba man, over Dr. Alex Ekwueme.
In 2007, it supported Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, another Fulani man.
In 2011 and again in 2015, it threw its full weight behind Goodluck Jonathan, an Ijaw from the Niger Delta.
In 2019, the zone gave bloc votes to Atiku Abubakar, a Northern Fulani.
And in 2023, the South East finally put forward one of its own, Peter Obi, a competent, tested, and widely respected technocrat. Yet again, that opportunity was denied, allegedly stolen.
So, when will it ever be the turn of the South East?
A Last Window Is Closing Fast
Let us be brutally honest: if Tinubu completes his 8-year tenure, power will return to the North in 2031. And if that happens, the South East will have to wait until 2039 or later before any real chance at the presidency resurfaces. That’s would be a full 40 years of exclusion.
By then, most of today’s Igbo politicians will probably be dead or irrelevant.
A Moment for Strategic Realignment
There is a growing call, and rightly so, that the time has come to support Peter Obi for either the presidency or the vice presidency, not just because he is Igbo, but because he represents the collective yearning of Nigeria’s youth, urban poor, and disillusioned middle class for accountability, frugality, and reform.
To make this a reality, the South East must do the following:
Forge smart alliances with key Northern blocs, especially the North East, the only other zone that has never produced a President.
Capitalize on the revolution and the Obidient movement, now the largest organic political base in the country, though now in temporary hibernation at the moment.
Shut down internal sabotage by exposing self-serving and greedy south east politicians who mortgage the zone’s future for power, appointments or contracts.
Build cross-regional coalitions based on equity, competence, and justice, not just ethnicity.
A rumored Atiku-Obi ticket for 2027 is being discussed, but even if not actualized, the Obidient bloc must be ready to negotiate or challenge at full strength. The idea of Peter Obi on the ballot again, either as presidential or vice-presidential candidate, must be taken seriously and must be supported fully from within.
Tinubu’s Role: Will He Repay the Debt of Justice?
There are whispers in political circles that Tinubu, a master strategist, may one day buy into the concept of “Igbo Lokan.” After all, if he could campaign on “Emi Lokan”, he may appreciate the moral and historical weight of the Igbo cause.
From the time Tinubu uttered ‘Emi Lokan’ until he became President, he proved he’s a determined man. What the Igbo need, too, is sheer determination. Igbo chances are brighter in 2031, but only if we play smart.”
Some believe that the ongoing bewildering loyalty of prominent South East APC figures like Dave Umahi, Hope Uzodimma, Benjamin Kalu, and Orji Uzor Kalu is building goodwill that Tinubu may return for their own selfish and self serving reasons even though nothing is guaranteed or cast in stone.
Yet, others warn that Tinubu’s choice of Kashim Shettima as VP, a northern Muslim, was a strategic placeholder. As things stand, Shettima will be a major contender in 2031 all things being equal. Will Tinubu risk offending the North to support an Igbo candidate? The jury is out.
The North’s Position: 2027 for South, 2031 for North
Prominent Northern voices are beginning to speak out on the power rotation debate:
Shehu Sani has advised that 2027 should be left to the South. He believes Tinubu deserves to finish 8 years, after which power can return to the North.
Bode George insists that the PDP must present a Southern candidate in 2027, arguing that it is time for the older generation to step aside.
The logic is simple: Buhari (North West) ruled for 8 years. Now it is the South’s turn until 2031. Any premature return to the North now will ignite dangerous instability.
Ohanaeze’s Warning to Obi
Yet, even as Peter Obi intensifies consultations in the North, Ohanaeze Ndigbo has sounded a cautionary note.
In a statement by Secretary General Okechukwu Isiguzoro, the group warned that depending on Northern endorsements has historically failed Igbo candidates.
“Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu, Senator Chuba Okadigbo, Rochas Okorocha, all believed in the illusion of Northern endorsement. It never materialized,” the statement read.
Ohanaeze advised Obi to consolidate his base, the youth, the South East, the Middle Belt, and progressive Christians in the North, before courting northern political leaders.
They also noted that Northern institutions still harbor mistrust toward Obi over Biafra agitations and his perceived aloofness on sensitive national questions.
Even at that, some still argue that the best way foward for the south east would be to support an Atiku-Obi ticket which will guarantee the vice presidency for the south east in 2027 and pave way for a negotiation for a south east presidency in 2031 instead of supporting a Tinubu second term which would leave us in the loop till 2039 or later.
Ultimately: This Is Our Moment
The call for Igbo Lokan or Igbo ka oruru, is not a cry for entitlement, it is a call for justice.
A region that has consistently held Nigeria together, through trade, industry, and national sacrifice, cannot continue to be politically castrated.
If Tinubu’s Emi Lokan was valid, then Igbo Lokan is overdue.
The South East has paid its dues. The time to support one of its own, Peter Obi or any credible Igbo candidate, is now.
Any attempt to delay this quest beyond 2027 or 2031 is nothing short of political erasure.
The Igbo must unite, strategize, and speak with one voice.
The presidency must rotate, not in word, but in deed.
The last window is open.
But it is closing fast.
By Hon. Chimazuru Nnadi-Oforgu
Duruebube Uzii na Abosi
Email. oblongmedialtd@gmail.com
OBLONG MEDIA UNLIMITED 
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