The Presidential candidate of Labour Party, LP, Mr Peter Obi, yesterday, restated his commitment to ensure a secured and united Nigeria, saying he would create wealth for Nigerians if elected president in 2023.
Obi made the pledge made the pledge during his Sout-West campaign rally held at the Lekan Salami Stadium, Adamasingba in Ibadan.
The LP presidential candidate, who highlighted the challenges of the country, expressed optimism that the challenges could be addressed.
He said: “We must secure and unite the country. When you secure the country, you are able to bring famers to return to the farm. That alone will start addressing food inflation.”
“By moving the country from consumption to production you are moving people away from poverty. The more you pull people out of poverty, the more you address criminality.
“Nigeria now has 13.8 per cent drug prevalence against the global average of 5 per cent. To deal with that crisis is production. We need to feed ourselves.
“Next year’s election should not be based on tribe. If it is by tribe, the north would have been safer and be more developed.
“We must respect the issue of religion, but even at that, we should not follow people blindly because of religion.
“We cannot use the process of yesterday or those who did not solve it yesterday for tomorrow.”
Pledging to fight corruption and make the education sector to work, the LP candidate said: “I am not going give excuses. The work of a leader is not to give excuses. I am not going to complain. It is not the job of a leader. I am not going to complain of the past. You are hiring for the future and I am going to be for the future.”
It’s S-East turn to produce President — Adebanjo
Earlier, leader of the pan-Yoruba socio-political organization, Afenifere, Pa Ayo Adebanjo, said in the spirit of fairness, the South-East should produce the next president in line with the agreement reached by past Nigerian leaders in 1954 that each geopolitical zone should produce president.
Adebanjo, who faulted the presidential ambition of the Presidential Candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Senator Bola Tinubu, recalled that before he (Tinubu) became governor of Lagos State, he had supported him on several occasions during his two-term administration.
He said: “When he was the governor of Lagos State, I supported him; I did not hate him then, why will I have the course to now hate him?
“Tinubu cannot confront me on this, but only people that are benefiting from him that are speaking ills of me.”