From Stanley Uzoaru, Owerri
A former governorship aspirant in Imo State, Dr Iroegbu Njoku, has advised Nigerians to elect a president with entrepreneurial skills in the 2023 presidential election, insisting that it is the only hope to turn around the dwindling economic fortunes of the country.
Njoku, who gave the advice while interacting with reporters in Owerri on Wednesday, emphasised that no nation or country succeeds economically without investing in human capital development.
He also asserted that the skills will help tackle other social-economic challenges, including the insecurity and poverty challenges the country face.
‘Many Nigerians today are lavishing in a high level of poverty. This level of poverty has contributed heavily to the growing level of insecurity in their lives and property across the country,’ he stated.
‘These two issues are some of the resultant effects of the many years of collective abandonment of the need to invest in the human capital of this great nation.
‘Human capital development is the stock of knowledge, skills, know-how and other acquired personal attributes that are useful in the production process of any economy, investment in human capital is very important as this is directly proportional to productivity and profitability of any economy.
‘No great nation achieves economic development without first improving its capacity to become more productive and profitable. Productivity is dependent not only on physical infrastructure and economic policies but on the capability and culture of the people to constructively use these vectors to increase and sustain high productivity and profitability.
‘It, therefore, behoves on us Nigerians to begin now to make a case for the need for Nigerians to elect a president that has an unshakable belief in human capital development in the next general elections,’ Njoku advised.