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Former Cross River State Governor and Peoples Redemption Party (PRP) presidential candidate, Donald Duke, has warned that personal ambitions among opposition politicians could weaken their efforts to address Nigeria’s challenges and challenge the ruling party.
Duke said opposition leaders needed to put aside individual interests and work together, stressing that the country’s problems were too serious to be solved by one person.
He made the remarks during an interview with News Central Managing Director, Kayode Akintemi.
The PRP candidate explained that his interest in the presidential race was not driven by a personal desire to occupy the highest political office but by his determination to see Nigeria function effectively.
“First of all, it’s not about me. The ambition is not to be president. My mission is to get Nigeria working,” Duke said.
He added that he would rather contribute to a collective effort involving capable people than pursue leadership for its own sake.
“I would love to be part of a team that gets this country working. That’s one.
“Two, the situation is so dire now that not one man can redeem Nigeria,” he said.
Duke argued that whoever emerges as president must build a competent team of professionals across different sectors and ensure they are held accountable for their responsibilities.
“At best, he can put together a team of experts in every sector, holding them completely accountable,” he said.
He also maintained that Nigeria’s current condition required decisive leadership, noting that actions taken to address deep-rooted problems could be mistaken for excessive harshness.
“You know, it’s the kind of government people say, wow, this guy is ruthless. It’s not ruthless,” he said.
“Things are so bad now that when you do the right thing, it’s, oh, you’re taking it too far.”
Using the analogy of a ship’s captain, Duke said the country needed a leader capable of bringing together an effective team to address its challenges.
“So you want to be a captain who assembles an incredible team to take us out of our rot because not one person can do it,” he said.
The former governor further criticised opposition politicians who insist on leading rather than supporting another candidate they consider better positioned for the task.
He said such an approach could undermine the collective objective of changing the country’s direction.
“And this is where I think the ego of the other candidates is becoming negative to Nigeria,” Duke said.
He added: “Either me or nobody else, or either me or let the incumbent remain. We all agree on one thing: that we’re not doing well as a nation, but if I’m not the one who’s going to be the captain of the ship, then let the nation continue to drift.”
Duke described the attitude as a major obstacle to progress, concluding: “That’s a problem.”
