Saraki: Atiku Has Requisite National Experience to Lead Nigeria

•He’ll deliver on his five priority policy thrusts, says Shekarau

Hammed Shittu in Ilorin and Ibrahim Shuaibu in Kano

Former President of the Senate, Dr. Bukola Saraki, yesterday, said of all the presidential candidates in Saturday’s election,  the Peoples Democratic Party(PDP) presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, was the only candidate with the requisite experience at the national level and capacity to lead the country.

At the same time, Senator Ibrahim Shekarau urged Nigerians to vote Atiku, because he would never fail to deliver on his five priority policy thrusts.

Speaking in Ilorin on the Saturday election and the need for the people of Kwara to vote PDP and Atiku, Saraki said, “Since the APC as a party and their leaders have failed to meet the yearnings and aspirations of Nigerians, former Vice President Abubakar and PDP remain the only option to rescue the country.

“The ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) has failed and cannot deliver to the people of the country, hence Nigerians should reject the party with their permanent voters cards (PVCs) so as to return the PDP into power.

“Out of all the presidential candidates vying for the number one seat of the country in this Saturday’s poll, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar has required experience at the national level, with due respect to my friends, Peter Obi and Rabiu Kwankwaso.

“Nigerians have suffered a lot under the APC-led federal government in the past seven and a half years and even at the state level and we cannot wait again to allow this APC to clinch power.

“Talk of insecurity, unemployment, economic woes, naira swap policy, among others, the people of the country should come out come Saturday and use their PVCs to vote the APC out.”

Saraki stated, “The situation now was not as bad during the PDP government and the APC has turned everything upside down and Nigerians cannot enjoy the democracy again. PDP remains the only option and Atiku Abubakar has all it takes to provide leadership zeal capable of moving the country forward.

“Don’t protest anymore, Saturday’s election is a day of rejecting the APC and the people should use their PVCs to vote out the APC and return PDP into power.”

On his absence from Kwara after the 2019 election, the two-term governor of the state, said, “I deliberately stayed away from Kwara to give the ruling APC in the state opportunity to have a peaceful day to day running of affairs of the state.

“If I continued to be moving around then, the government in power can be saying that I didn’t allow them to provide dividends of democracy to the people of the state and I don’t want that kind of insinuations.

“But I want to say that, despite the fact that I gave them a breathing space to perform, the APC-led administration has allegedly failed to provide dividends of democracy to the people of the state in the past three and a half years.”

On his part, Shekarau said, “No one is in doubt that the unity of the country is being threatened by various groups. Atiku will put in motion programmes and policies that will unite the country.”

Shekarau, in an interactive session/dinner with journalists in Kano State, listed Atiku’s priority policy thrusts to include unity of Nigeria, adequate security, education, economic development, and devolution of power.

He pointed out that the security of life and property in Nigeria “is highly threatened,” and stated that if given the mandate, the former vice president would fix the problems associated with security across the country.

Shekarau said, “Atiku will not be a greedy president. He will address the structure of governance. He will ensure devolution of powers so that more activities of governance will be taking place in states and local government areas.”

He said Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso’s presidential ambition and the power of incumbency of Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje of the APC would not stop Atiku from “sweeping the required votes in Kano State, and, indeed, across the country.”