THE Founder of Household of God Church, Reverend Chris Okotie, has urged the presidential candidates of the various political parties to step down for him.
Speaking with journalists on Sunday during the celebration of his 63rd birthday at his church in Oregun, Ikeja, Lagos State, Okotie said he wants to succeed President Muhammadu Buhari in 2023 as an Interim President.
“I want to appeal to all presidential candidates to withdraw from the race and allow me to come in as the Interim President.
“I want to implore Asiwaju to support my government for the betterment of the country and I also want to tell Obi that the system that introduced him cannot take him anywhere, because he cannot operate in the system we have now.
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“All the presidential candidates should support me to succeed President Buhari as the Interim President,” he said.
Okotie, who contested and lost the presidential election in the past, said the presidential system of government being practiced in Nigeria was not working.
“We must also rise above tribe and religion because there is an imbalance in the country and we are not practicing federalism. Instead, what we are practicing is a presidential system of government.
“Since 1999, things have been declining because the presidential system of government we are practicing has failed us.”
The cleric further called for the scrapping of the national and state assemblies.
According to him, the money used in running the institutions should be spent on something else.
Noting that the elite has hijacked Nigeria’s democracy, Okotie said, “We must get rid of the National and State Assemblies because maintaining each member cost the country billions of naira. Some of the standing committees at both assemblies are not useful to the country, they are only representing themselves, not the populace.
“For the best of the country, both assemblies should be scrapped and the money for maintaining them should be used for something else. What we have in Nigeria today is the government of the party, by the party and for the party.
“Ministers and the commissioners should also be expunged because Nigeria’s democracy has been hijacked by the elite for their interest and they are deceiving the downtrodden who don’t know anything.
“And the most important of all is our Constitution. It should be changed to a people-oriented Constitution, not the military one we have now. After the change, we can then restructure the country for the better,” Okotie added.
Speaking on his plans for Nigeria, Okotie said, “If I am made the Interim President, our government will be a transparent one and we will redirect the steps of the youth who are into internet fraud and turn them to better persons in the society and empower them.
“A young person with inclination to technology advancement will ensure financial accountability of government and each state will have control of their national resources.
“First, we emulated the British and now we are copying the American style of democracy that didn’t take us anywhere.
“The presidential system of government has failed us woefully. We should enable professional associations constitutionally to acquire legislative powers as a replacement for the removal of the legislature from our political system.
“And we should also embrace the concept of aboriginal democracy, that is a government from the people, for the people and with the people. This is distinct from the current experience of political parties which is the government of the party, the party and for the party.”
He added that his government will focus on national reconciliation and reconstruction.
Okotie urged Nigerians to work towards a successful transition to an interim government at the end of Buhari’s tenure.
