Kedu atụmatụ ị ga-eji hụ na ọchịchị gị baara ma Naịjirịa Ugwu na nke Ndịda uru n'otu ọnọdụ?

Last night, I played host to political stakeholders from Borno State, led by Hon. Mohammed Kumaila. It is encouraging to see that more people, especially political leaders from across the country, are increasingly becoming concerned about the deteriorating state of the Nigerian nation to the extent of engaging in finding solutions, round the clock. The conversation with the Borno leaders centred more on the current worsening security situation, especially in Northern Nigeria. The consensus is that the occupation of Nigerian territories across some parts of North East, North West, and North Central states is a clear failure of political leadership, especially under the Tinubu-led APC Federal Government. It is unacceptable that bandits or terrorists continue to takeover communities, imposing levies on citizens and disrupting farming activities. I believe that with the right political leadership, Nigerian security forces have the capacity to take on the insecurity confronting the country. It has become urgent for citizens to unite and rescue Nigeria. I thanked the Borno stakeholders for their show of concern about the state of the nation and expressed readiness to support efforts aimed at restoring the peace and economic prosperity of the country. -AA

Why can’t we do better? Our pristine Northern leadership has always recognized and admitted to our diversity. In a Speech Sir Ahmadu Bello gave at a Dinner Party in Los Angeles in 1960, he said: “Northern Nigeria is a large and heavily populated country, full of vitality and promise. In such a large country, there is inevitably a great deal of diversity, but in this diversity, as in our great country, lies our strength.” Sixty-five years later, we should be thinking of how to make our diversity work for our development. We must muster both the courage and the political will to overcome the many obstacles to our unity, and we know them. Some of the obstacles that we may not know very well are the subtle and sophisticated subversion by our adversaries who are constantly working to drive a wedge between us, often fabricating stories and capitalizing on our fears of the other, using technology, to sow seeds of discord. Their target is our God-given wealth. We have seen the Democratic Republic of Congo, and we must not relent.

While you rest in Europe, millions of Nigerian parents lie awake at night, staring at empty cupboards and wondering how they will face their children in the morning. That is the reality on our streets. Atiku wants to offer Nigerians more than empty figures. He has a plan that respects the dignity and protects the survival of the Nigerian people.But the questions Nigerians are asking have not gone on leave with you. When you return, bring answers. Reconcile the Federation Account figures of N30trillion Naira. Provide full transparency around the duty exemptions of over #34trillion Naira. Explain what Nigerians concretely received for the ₦15.8 trillion your government says subsidy removal mobilised.And explain why intervention is supposedly backward when Atiku proposes it, but miraculously becomes Renewed Hope when you announce it. His Excellency Atiku Abubakar will continue to engage Nigerians directly on how to make their lives affordable again. He does not need to engage personally with a President who attacks his ideas while refusing to call his name.

Bigger figures do not mean bigger value. When supposedly record allocations coexist with weaker purchasing power, enormous debts and outstanding obligations, government cannot simply shout ‘FAAC’ and expect Nigerians to stop asking questions.” Atiku said the entire argument ultimately comes down to affordability and the quality of life of ordinary Nigerians. “This is the contrast at the heart of the economic debate: Tinubu made life expensive; Atiku will make life affordable again. Affordability must mean cheaper transportation, lower pressure on food prices, more manageable energy costs, stronger purchasing power and an economy in which the income of ordinary Nigerians can once again meet the necessities of everyday life. “The test is brutally simple: what is the money worth? What has it delivered? What obligations has it settled? And are Nigerians actually better off?

Question: Why are you running when many people believe that it is the turn of the South and do you believe in the power rotation principle? Answer: The idea of power rotation became a subject of debate during the 1995 Constitutional Conference, which I was a member of, alongside other prominent Nigerians, including the late Dr. Alex Ekwueme. I didn’t agree with Dr. Ekwueme’s suggestion that the six regional blocs should be given recognition in the proposed constitution. The democratization process is a living concept, and looking into our experience thus far and the imbalance in the rotation of political power from 1999 till date, I believe that we should give a constitutional backing to the idea of rotational presidency. There are three blocs, each from both the North and the South, and so far, one major bloc from each zone has benefitted from the zoning principle. So, the imbalance is self-explanatory, and it is part of the issues we must revisit in our attempt at restructuring the country. My decision to contest in 2027 is particularly hinged on the spectacular failure of the Bola Tinubu administration. This is a government that has brought the worst cost of living crisis ever. Nigerians are struggling to survive and businesses are shutting down in proportions never seen before. Our democracy would not live up to its meaning if the scandal of the Tinubu administration is not challenged. I have a better plan to revive the economy through policies that are specifically designed to restore vitality to the economy and make life affordable again for Nigerians.

Question: What would you say to South-East voters who believe that their region has been denied a fair opportunity to produce the president and why should they trust you? Answer: I have said repeatedly that I represent the best political bridge to actualize the dream of a Southeast presidency. I make the assertion with all sense of modesty based on our shared history. The Southeast and the Northeast, where I come from, must work together within the framework of a pan-Nigerian project to lead negotiation for correcting the power-sharing imbalance in Nigeria. The clamour for Southeast presidency is as valid as the clamour for Northeast presidency. I believe that it is based on mutual understanding and cooperation that the Southeast and Northeast can achieve the goal of producing a president of Nigeria—neither can go it alone.