From Priscilla Ediare, Ado-Ekiti
As Nigerians head to the polls next Saturday, the Director General of Obi/ Datti Presidential Campaign Council (PCC) of the Labour Party(LP), Chief Akin Osuntokun, has declared that the party’s presidential candidate, Peter Obi, is the best man to succeed President Mohammedu Buhari, noting he will ensure the real change Nigerians have been longing for.
The former Managing Director of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), stated that the February 25 election would determine whether Nigerians are actually ready to change their destiny, and chart a new way forward for themselves or continue in suffering.
Osuntokun made the remarks at the weekend in Ado-Ekiti, capital of Ekiti State, while addressing huge crowd of party supporters from across the 16 Local Governments, at a Town Hall Meeting.
The Ekiti- born Campaign DG described next Saturday as the biggest day of decision for Nigerians to choose who will lead them for another four years, urging voters to go out en masse and vote for the LP candidate in the election, assuring that with Obi as the next president, all things will work together for good for the people of the country.
The former Presidential Adviser, charged all the party supporters across the country, as well as agents to build on the current tempo of mobilisation for the party’s candidate, assuring that Obi after winning would speedily address all challenges such as unemployment, insecurity, hunger, poverty, among several others.
In his welcome address, the Presidential Campaign Coordinator in Ekiti, Mr Moses Jolayemi, urged voters to troop out on Saturday to elect Obi and his vice as the next President and Vice President of Nigeria, assuring that the candidates and the party would not renege on the promises made to them.
He asked party members and agents to start moving from house to house, and canvass for the emergence of Obi for a new Nigeria.
He declared that Obi would win Saturday election by landslide, and advised the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC ) to guide against manipulation of BIVAS by enemies of progress within and outside of the Commission
” It is crystal clear that Peter Obi will win the coming election in a free, fair exercise, especially if INEC does not compromise the use of BIVAS .
” If BIVAS is allowed to work, we will have credible, violence-free election, because if you look at the configuration of BIVAS from the point of voting, collation and announcement of results, there is no much of human intervention with this, hence, Peter Obi is the next President.”
Commenting on the recent Naira redesign and cashless policy of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the Ekiti PCC Coordinator said labour party supported the policy, but condemned the hasty manner it was implemented.
In his remarks, the Chairman of Labour Party in the state, Mr Odunayo Okunade, said labour party would rule Nigeria and promote family values, exactly according to the dictates of its logo, which is about father, mother and children.
He noted that LP is the only party in the country that has respect for lives and wellbeing of Nigerians, and would therefore not let Nigerians down.
” Going by the experience of Nigerians, parties like APC and PDP, parading broom and umbrella have no good plans for the country and do not have the competence to run the country effectively.
” This is why they repeatedly run Nigeria aground and put Nigerians in her present precarious situations”, he said.
In her address, the woman leader of the party in Ekiti, Mrs Wendy Obi, called on voters in the state, especially women, to make sure they vote massively for labour party so as to free themselves and their children from the current hardship, showing faces in virtually all facets of life.
She assured that Nigerians, under the leadership of Peter Obi would never regret voting for him as their next president.
She claimed both the APC and PDP had destroyed the country beyond immediate repairs, especially by incurring huge debt for the nation without much to show for it, asking Nigerians not to again make the mistake of voting such parties into power.
She said one of the priorities of Obi would be to take the country from being a consumption to production country, saying that was the new way to go for the betterment of Nigeria.
Dignitaries at the meeting include National Fiancial Secretary, Gbenga Daramola. Youth leader, Comrade Kola Agbede, State Secretary, A.Adesua and all the 16 Local government party Chairmen, among several others.