As criticisms mount against the outgoing APC led government, Nigerians across the country want ‘change’. A lot of readers who have called and spoken to me from different parts of the country were not satisfied with the performance of this administration. Even people from the president’s home state think his government is a failure and they are tired.
The Northern Elders Forum last week asked him to immediately resign from his position because he has failed to address the issues of killings, kidnappings and general insecurity in the country. The elders in their well-publicised press statement said they cannot continue to live and die under the dictates of killers, kidnappers, rapists and sundry criminal groups that have deprived citizens of their right to live in peace and security.
Sadiq from Kano thinks the president’s policies are antiquated due to his old age. He thinks there should be age limits for politicians whether they are good or bad because you get to a time in life when you are outdated on the times and you are stuck in your own ways. He thinks some people should be retired from politics. He concluded saying that if you hand over the US to President Buhari, he would ruin it and blame Abraham Lincoln.
From Kaduna, Shehu said that they are left for dead in their respective villages. He lamented that no one is safe in Kaduna. He wants to flee from his village but doesn’t know the direction to go because no part of the state is safe. Indeed, no part of the country is safe.
Everyone is good and evil at the same time but majority of the people that have spoken to me in the past few weeks think this regime is essentially wicked and evil. If Nigeria must survive, the electorate must look beyond political parties, ethnicity and religion and look at the overall character of the individuals running for public office, particularly the office of the president. Zainab from Bauchi thinks the survival of Nigeria depends so much on the outcome of the 2023 presidential election. She believes that if the electorate gets it right, Nigeria will get it right.
Already there are more than 20 aspirants wanting to be president after Buhari with some of them being part of the old order or contributors to our current nightmare. And you begin to wonder what they want to do tomorrow that they couldn’t do now. What future promise they want to make when they couldn’t fulfill one percent of their old promises. It’s even amazing listening to some of the ‘wanna be’ presidents tell the already traumatised nation that they want to continue from where President Buhari stopped and consolidate on his achievements. Are these folks for real. What do they take us for? Bunch of morons?
Kunle from Lagos said, of all those jostling to be president in 2023, only one person stands out as well qualified based on his antecedents, and that is Mr. Peter Obi. He hopes he emerges as the consensus candidate of the People’s Democratic Party because of clarity of his message and his electoral value. He went on to recall that as Vice Presidential candidate of PDP in 2019, Obi wasn’t just an appendage; he contributed to the huge votes PDP got from the South East. Anambra where Mr. Obi came from registered the largest number of voters in the South East, posted the highest number of votes for PDP from the zone and was the only state where the party won in all the polling units without exception.
For Kunle, PDP should just narrow their search for a credible consensus presidential candidate to Mr. Gregory Peter Obi whose declaration to run for the highest office is already creating excitement among the youths from across the country.
2023 will be Nigeria’s most consequential election. It’s an election that will determine whether we are moving forward or backwards. I personally believe that we need to move forward and re-image our politics in a manner that will bring progress politically, socially and economically.
Permit me to re-amplify the qualities of Mr. Gregory Peter Obi, the former Governor of Anambra State, a man whose involvement in politics is service. Obi is a good man, decent, selfless and resourceful, a solution provider, good listener, highly productive, humble and well prepared.
He is by far one of the decent and most brilliant politicians coming out of the South East in recent times. He has an excellent reputation for integrity and outstanding character. He has the capacity to inspire and earn the trust of both elders and the youths who have lost trust and confidence in the political class. The youths will see him for who he is, a role model and a steady hand against an uncertain future.
A post Buhari presidency will require a leader with global exposure, business and political experience to navigate the delicate process of uniting Nigeria and midwifing an economic rebirth. Those youths on the streets need jobs and inspiration. Nigeria needs a leader with the capacity to create a productive economy that will provide the much-needed jobs, and a system of education that will equip the youths with the right skills to become employable. .
No matter what view one takes Peter Obi stands tall as a steady hand who can be trusted to fix our broken politics, grow the economy and end insecurity through job creation. The last time we had a budget surplus was between 1995/96. Afterwards, we have run both budget deficit and trade deficit. We need a leader that can reverse the trend by sustaining a responsible fiscal authority.
As Governor of Anambra State, he maintained a very cordial relationship with all the faiths and religions, including the elites and political class. He treated everyone as equal deserving of complete respect. As president, he will maintain the same social harmony across board.
Facts are sacred. Obi inherited a dysfunctional state where the civil service operated from makeshift kiosks. The state was in debt and owed arrears of unpaid pensions and salaries. Education was backward as the average male child did not progress beyond Junior Secondary School. Obi changed all these. By the time he left office, he bequeathed his successor with over N75bn and no single debt profile. His accomplishments is a clear demonstration that he is worthy of higher office.
2023 will be about big issues; the future of the republic, the unity of the country, security of lives and property v. Insecure borders that allow indiscriminate influx of armed migrants and militias, prudent management of the economy , lower tariff v. higher tariff etc. If 2023 boils down to zoning of the presidency to the South, I am confident the South East will be proud to offer Peter Obi as her best choice to serve as Nigeria’s president, a duty he will discharge diligently with honour and dignity. If the choice boils down to merit and character, Obi encompasses those qualities.
With Obi as president, no part of Nigeria will be neglected. As governor of Anambra State, he was instrumental in fast tracking development across the state. Through prudent management of resources, the state boasts of the best network of roads. The state became among the very best in education. He grew the state from a debtor state to sufficiency. If given the chance to lead a post-Buhari presidency he will not turn his back on any part of Nigeria, he will not turn his back on retirees and pensioners, they will not be forgotten men and women. He will not turn his back on education and the labour union. The unemployed will not be forgotten. He will create millions of jobs by investing heavily in manufacturing. He will create millions of small businesses and bring back the big businesses that left Nigeria.
Peter Obi will be the president for all Nigerians. No section of the country will be neglected . As a man of faith, his oath of office will be a promise kept to the nation.