The Atiku/Okowa Presidential Campaign Organisation, on Thursday, advised President Muhammadu Buhari, not to waste his precious time campaigning for the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Ahmed Tinubu, because Nigerians have roundly rejected him for his narcotics connection.
This is as the Vice-Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Governor of Delta State, Dr Ifeanyi Okowa, has promised that the presidential candidate of the party, Atiku Abubakar, would ensure that the Petroleum Industry Act was enforced, including provision on host communities’ fund, if elected.
Atiku/Okowa campaign further claimed that Nigerians had registered their rejection of Tinubu as they had shown that they would never trust or elect a narcotics-related lawbreaker; an individual accused of treasury-looting and many other reprehensible acts as president.
In a statement by one of spokespersons of the campaign, Kola Ologbondiyan, stated: “Is it not preposterous and a huge spat on the faces of Nigerians that an individual, who is beleaguered by allegations of corruption, perjury, identity theft, inconsistencies in name and ancestry, as well as alleged narcotics offence for which he forfeited a whopping sum of $460,000 to the United States of America, could present himself for election into the office of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria?
“It is imperative to state that Nigerians will never entrust the destiny of our nation to any individual, who is completely tarnished; whose persona is globally tainted with issues of criminal allegations, who cannot explain the source of his wealth in the face of accusations that it is proceed of corruption.
“Of course, there is no way Nigerians will trust or elect an individual, who is so depraved that he can present the photograph of another person, former Governor of Cross Rivers State, Donald Duke, as his to gain followership in a documentary used as part of his campaign materials to canvass for votes.”
According to the spokesperson of the campaign, “such proclivity to falsehood is evident in the attempt by Tinubu, who cannot point to any resounding legacy project he articulated and executed in his brawling years as governor of Lagos State, to shamelessly claim credit for the achievements of his predecessors and successors in office.”
He said it was strange that anybody could expect Nigerians to elect a failed governor, whose only achievement is entrenching governance by brawl, personal enrichment and puffery.
“Nigerians across the country have since established their preference for the Presidential Candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, over and above the deflated Tinubu as the next President of our great country.
“This is because Atiku has proven himself as a leader with the required integrity, sound reputation and desired capacity, competence, presence of mind, political will and stamina to lead our nation at this critical time,” he said.
He said Nigerians wanted Atiku on the saddle in their yearning for the return of the good days; the period of Atiku Abubakar as Vice President and Chairman of the Economic Council, when the nation witnessed unprecedented economic growth to become one of the fastest growing economies of the world, where citizens were secure, prosperous and happy.
In view of this, Ologbondiyan President said, Buhari should, therefore, not waste his time to campaign for Asiwaju Tinubu, who has lost grip of the presidential contest and is only seen in the public as a butt of jokes for his endless gaffes, display of vacuity and incapacity to lead.
“The overflowing mammoth crowd that received Atiku and his entourage in President Buhari’s home state of Katsina as well as in Imo, Kwara, Gombe, Osun, Akwa Ibom and other states of the federation is a clear pointer to the fact that Nigerians, irrespective of political, ethnic or religious affiliations, have pitched their tents with the PDP presidential candidate.
“What Nigerians expect from President Buhari at this time is to provide the enabling environment that will guarantee peaceful, free, fair, transparent and credible 2023 general election as well as a smooth transfer of power in line with the expressed will of the people on May 29, 2023,” he stressed.
Meanwhile, Okowa, said so much fund was needed for the development of oil-producing communities in the Niger Delta, and assured them that, when elected, the Atiku-Okowa administration would change the poor conditions in the oil-bearing area through full implementation of the Act.
Okowa, who made the promise at the PDP governorship campaign flag-off in Warri South and Uvwie Local Government Areas said, Deltans were privileged to have one of their own selected to become vice-president in the next dispensation.
He therefore, urged all Deltans to rise and collectively support PDP, saying, “we must work hard to ensure victory for the party.”
According to him, the Atiku-Okowa ticket would take care of some of the teething problems facing the nation and “we have resolved to ensure that our people are taken care of, particularly, the oil bearing communities. There is a provision in the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), that is the Host Communities Fund and we will ensure its full implementation for the benefit of the oil-bearing communities”.
On how the party intended to tackle insecurity, Okowa said Atiku would engage relevant stakeholders to ensure constitutional amendment to legalise state police.
“We have observed that the federal police was grossly inadequate to secure Nigerians and therefore, we are advocating the establishment of state police to enable every state have its own police to handle peculiar security challenges.
“Aside the state police, we will recruit more hands into federal police, procure more weapons and provide adequate logistics and intelligence gathering devices for effective policing,” he said.
Chuks Okocha in Abuja and Sylvester Idowu in Warri
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