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From Obinna Odogwu, Awka
Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate, Peter Obi, yesterday, said Nigeria’s presidential seat is too important to be used as a retirement benefit.
Obi made the statement at a town hall meeting with the members of Anambra State Traditional Rulers Council in Awka.
Obi, who enumerated the powers of a president in the socio-economic and political situations, cautioned Nigerians against electing the wrong person as president on February 25.
Obi promised to unite and secure Nigeria if elected president next month even as he also pledged to revamp the nation’s economy and give the country a new and profitable direction.
He blamed the problems of insecurity, inflation, unemployment and others on the consumption nature of the economy.
The LP presidential candidate said if the country would leapfrog from consumption to production, most of the inherent problems would reduce.
He stressed the need for the country to take advantage of its agricultural potential to tackle unemployment and urged the traditional rulers to support the emergency of credible political leaders.
He said: “Sitting on the fence during the 2023 elections might be costly for the country politically. I know the constitution requires that the traditional rulers should not play partisan politics, but when bad leaders are elected it affects you adversely like others. For this, you must get involved in a manner that you would not be seen, but your actions felt.”
Obi noted that Nigeria is the only crude oil producing nation that the ongoing Russian/Ukrainian war has not improved its economy.
Earlier, he had a town hall meeting with students in the state and after his meeting with the monarchs, proceeded to Onitsha for his rally and other engagements in the commercial city.
“All you hear in Nigeria everyday is bad news. The question is how did we get there? It is the leadership failure over the years. The leadership that failed to do the right thing. And the consequences of that is that it created anarchy.
“We want to start reversing that. I and Datti have said we can change this. Other countries have gone through this. We are not going to wait. We are going to sacrifice to change it.
“What are we going to do? We will secure and unite Nigeria. Nigeria today is not secured. Everywhere you go insecurity is the problem. Nigeria today is not united. Everybody is talking about their ethnic group and religion. Everybody has a reason not to be a Nigerian.”
In Asaba, the Labour Party presidential candidate declared Nigeria money is safer in the hand of a stingy man who will save and invest it for the future; invest it in education, and health and other needs of the people.
Addressing a huge crowd of organic supporters in Asaba, Obi said: “I know you heard when they said Peter is stingy. We want to use our money for our people. This election is about character and people we can trust. Everybody knows the schools I attended. When I was the governor in Anambra everybody knows what I did, all the works I did. When I left government, everybody knows where I live, go and verify”
The former governor he has come to retire the old order and take back Nigeria for the future.
“If you put my age and Datti age and divide it into two, we are in our fifties. The other people if you put their own they are in their seventies. You know there is a retirement age. PDP chairman is 70 years, APC chairman is 70 years. Labour Party chairman is 52 years old. So it is our turn. We will retire them, we will pay them compensation.”
