2023: I’m Committed to a Better Nigeria, Says Obi

James Sowole

A former Governor of Anambra State and frontline Presidential aspirant of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Mr. Peter Obi, yesterday, said he was committed to a better Nigeria, where fairness, equity and socio-economic development of the country, would be a golden principle.

Obi stated while addressing PDP delegates, leaders and members, at the party secretariat in Abeokuta, Ogun State capital.

The former governor, who was accompanied by Dr. Doyin Okupe, declared that Nigeria was in crisis, and promised to bring his wealth of experience, both in private and public sector, to take Nigeria out of the doldrums.

He said: “Let me assure you that my commitment is to building a better Nigeria, my desperation is to see Nigeria better than it is today. We cannot continue the way Nigeria is today.

“What we want to say is that a nation must be built on fairness, must be built on equity, must be built on respect for each other and we in the South East are saying we too should be allowed to serve and I assure you that that the opportunity will change Nigeria.

“No country with 33 per cent unemployment and 65 per cent underemployment will survive. Sixty per cent of this unemployed and underemployed are among the youths, the most productive population of the country and in their young age are doing nothing.

“Today, our government is owing people pension, they don’t pay people gratuity. Our schools are closed, our universities have been closed now and nobody is saying anything. There are 15 million out-of-school children, the drug prevalence among our youths today is the highest in the world. We must change the situation.”

Obi insisted that, for the sake of equity, justice and respect for the South East zone, a president of Igbo extraction must be allowed to rule the nation, urging party delegates and leaders not to allow money and sentiment influence their voting at the primaries.

He advised the delegates and party members, that they should ask whoever come to them with sweet words, what they have been doing in the last 25 years and what they have achieved.

Obi, who highlighted some of his achievements while in the saddle in Anambra State, said people should go and investigate his tenure and make public their findings.

While noting that, if the people in power, did not steal public fund, nobody would steal, he, therefore, insisted that delegates must shun sentiments during voting, because Nigerians are one but politicians, created divisions to remain in office.