What are five reasons your government would be better than the APC's?

The APC has not served the people; they have served themselves. And when the people, rightfully aggrieved, have raised their voices in protest, they have been silenced, dragged to courts under charges of treason. Meanwhile, the APC's leaders bask in luxury, indifferent to the hardship that grips the nation. But there is hope. In this dark landscape, Dr. Asue Ighodalo shines as a beacon of integrity and vision. His candidacy offers a path to redemption for Edo State. Where the APC has faltered, Ighodalo stands firm, ready to serve with competence and a genuine commitment to the people’s welfare. People of Edo State, the time has come to use the power vested in you. As you go to the polls, ask yourself: Has the APC made your life better, or have they only deepened your struggles? The answer is clear. Your vote for Ighodalo will not only bring change to Edo State but will also send a resounding message across Nigeria that we reject the deceit and self-serving ways of the APC.

In our own history, President Goodluck Jonathan returned from Equatorial Guinea in 2014 following a deadly bomb blast in Abuja. That is the expected minimum in moments of national trauma. Yet President Bola Tinubu, incapable of solving Nigeria’s worsening insecurity, chooses instead to gallivant across Europe — governing Nigeria in absentia as if from a holiday perch. If he cannot act, the least he can do is show up. If he cannot lead with empathy, he should at least attempt the performance of it. Nigeria is bleeding. Nigerians are dying. The president is nowhere to be found. My heartfelt condolences go to the people and Government of Benue State. We stand with you in grief and in solidarity. An inept administration may not suddenly discover competence. But we will not stop calling it out. If Tinubu cannot deliver safety and dignity to Nigerians, the very least he can do is pretend to care —regardless of ethnicity, religion, or political affiliation. –AA

Atiku described as extraordinary the reported announcement by Nigeria’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Jimoh Ibrahim, that he had secured Tinubu a seat “not too far from where the US President, Donald Trump, will be seated.” “The seat was secured, but the President disappeared,” Atiku said. “If proximity to President Trump was considered such a diplomatic achievement, why did Tinubu abandon the opportunity and send his deputy? Why celebrate securing a strategic seat for the President when the President had no intention of occupying it? “That contradiction becomes even more scandalous when Nigerians remember that Tinubu’s administration committed up to $9 million of Nigeria’s scarce foreign exchange to American lobbyists supposedly hired to improve its standing before the government and people of the United States. “What exactly did Nigerians purchase with that money? Why spend millions of dollars lobbying Washington while Tinubu repeatedly stays away from New York? Why hire lobbyists to speak for Nigeria in America when the Nigerian President cannot summon the courage to appear at the world’s biggest diplomatic gathering on American soil?

“Nigeria could project military power across its border, yet its President could not project Nigeria’s voice from its seat at the United Nations. That contradiction is humiliating.” Atiku demanded that the Presidency state unequivocally whether Tinubu was free to travel to the United States and disclose the real reason for his third consecutive UNGA absence. “If there is no impediment, the Presidency must explain this serial absenteeism. If an impediment exists, Nigerians have a right to know,” he said. “Nigeria is bigger than Bola. Our diplomatic influence, economic interests and international reputation must not be subordinated to Tinubu’s American baggage. “After committing up to $9 million to American lobbyists, Nigerians deserve more than silence, evasions and another empty presidential seat at the United Nations. “Is this the kind of President Nigeria deserves? “Mr Bola, your seat was reportedly secured near President Donald Trump. Why did you refuse to occupy it?

The former Vice President reiterated his commitment to policies designed to reduce the cost of living if elected president, including a targeted production subsidy for petroleum products refined in Nigeria, rather than a return to an open-ended subsidy on imported fuel. He said the policy would be structured to support domestic refining, eliminate waste and ensure that government support translates directly into lower prices for consumers. “My promise to make life affordable again is not a political slogan. It is a solemn covenant with the Nigerian people. “We will support what Nigeria produces. We will support fuel refined in Nigeria, create Nigerian jobs and insist that every naira of government support delivers a measurable benefit to the consumer. “The purpose of government is not merely to announce reforms. The purpose of government is to make life better for the people.” Atiku said Nigeria’s young people deserve classrooms, skills, jobs and opportunities that allow them to fulfil their potential rather than an economy that leaves survival increasingly dependent on dangerous and uncertain livelihoods.

I have the experience to lead this country, and that is what Nigeria needs now. I have done this work before. Nigerians elected me Vice President twice, in 1999 and 2003, and in government I led the reforms that returned loss-making government companies to private hands and opened our economy to private investment. I served Nigeria in the Customs Service from 1969 to 1986, and I have built businesses that today employ thousands of Nigerians, so I know how jobs are created. The two issues Nigerians care about most are restoring vitality to our economy and securing the country. My plan is clear: end insecurity, bring down the cost of living, create opportunities for every Nigerian, and uphold the rule of law. Nigeria has given me so many opportunities to be who I am today. If the presidents we have had offered better leadership, I would have retired my ambition. But I cannot, in good conscience, do that when I know I have better ideas to offer. The constitution allows a four-year term, and a second term is not an automatic entitlement. I am in this race to serve.