By ADEYEMI ADELEYE/ADERONKE OJEDIRAN

A former PDP National Deputy Chairman, Chief Olabode George, has mourned the passing of the immediate past President, Muhammadu Buhari, saying his death was a lesson to all power mongers.

In a statement issued in Lagos, the former PDP National Deputy Chairman said that Buhari, who reportedly died in a London clinic on Sunday, had run and concluded his race as a mortal.

George, a former Military Governor of old Ondo State, described Buhari?s death as a ?leveller?, urging all politicians to be sober.

He said: ?Obviously, death has a humbling power. It eliminates advantages and disadvantages.

?The moment it strikes, you will realize that all men and women are the same, irrespective of social status, wealth, fame, power, religion and connections.

?Everybody will end up in six feet. We are all mortals.

?The lesson of his death is for everybody to be sober, whether you are in power or not, rich or poor. Death does not give a notice.

?It is also wrong for anybody to mock somebody?s death. It is un-African. God does not like that because judgment belongs to Him alone.

?As my former boss, I see his death as a lesson to everybody. Life is transient and the power you wield today is temporary. The only permanent power belongs to God Almighty.?

George used the opportunity to send a strong message to former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and 2023 PDP presidential candidate, that the presidency would remain in the South till 2031.

He reiterated that PDP, as a party, would not field a Northerner as presidential candidate in 2027.

George added: ?It is the policy of our party as handed over to us by our founding fathers.

?This is not my personal opinion but rooted in our party constitution. I also want the electorate to know this.

?Atiku can go to another party to contest but PDP will look for a Southerner to wrest power from the APC in 2027.

?A cardinal principle of our party is that? eight years North, eight years South, simple. It is not my own making. Anything short of this is unacceptable.

?Atiku and the rest know that if they remain in PDP, it is not possible for them to get the PDP ticket,? he said.

Also, Sen. Musiliu Obanikoro has mourned the passing of former President Muhammadu Buhari on Sunday in London.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Buhari died aged 82 in a London clinic.

In an interview with NAN on Sunday, Obanikoro said ?We are from God and to him we shall return.

?He played his part, first as a military officer, later as military Head of State and Civilian President.

?My condolences to his family and loved ones as they mourn, may Allah grant him Aljanna Firdausi.?

NAN reports that after three failed attempts, Buhari achieved a historic victory in 2015, becoming the country?s first opposition candidate to defeat an incumbent.

In 2019, he was re-elected for another four-year term.

Buhari had always been popular among the poor of the North (known as the ?talakawa? in the Hausa language), but for the 2015 campaign, he had the advantage of a united opposition grouping behind him. (NAN)

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