Alhaji Atiku Abubakar. |
ON OCTOBER 6, 2018, I
SOUGHT AND OBTAINED THE MANDATE OF THE PEOPLES DEMOCRATIC PARTY, TO FLY THEIR
FLAG AS A CANDIDATE FOR THE OFFICE OF PRESIDENT OF THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF
NIGERIA.
TODAY, I AM FORMALLY
PRESENTING MYSELF TO YOU AS THE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE OF NOT JUST THE PDP, BUT
OF THE HOPES AND ASPIRATIONS OF ALL NIGERIANS.
THE SAD FACT TODAY, AS
YOU KNOW, IS THAT TOO MANY OF OUR PEOPLE ARE NOT WORKING AND ARE LIVING IN
POVERTY AND INSECURITY.
THE VERY FABRIC OF OUR
SOCIETY IS BREAKING DOWN.
WE HAVE NEVER BEEN SO
DIVIDED AS A NATION.
THE MOST IMPORTANT
QUESTION IN THIS ELECTION IS: “ARE YOU BETTER OFF THAN YOU WERE FOUR YEARS AGO?
ARE YOU RICHER OR POORER?” THAT IS WHY OUR PRIMARY FOCUS IS TO GET NIGERIA
WORKING AGAIN.
HOWEVER, I AM NOT HERE TO
TELL YOU HOW I WILL GET NIGERIA WORKING AGAIN.
INSTEAD I WOULD LIKE TO
TELL YOU HOW WE WILL GET NIGERIA WORKING AGAIN TOGETHER.
I AM STRONGLY OF THE VIEW
THAT I AM JUST ONE NIGERIAN AND ONE NIGERIAN CANNOT BE AS WISE AS ALL NIGERIANS.
PDP's Presidential Candidate, Atiku Abubakar. |
TOO OFTEN, NIGERIANS HAVE
BEEN PROMISED BETTER GOVERNANCE BY THOSE SEEKING THEIR VOTES. SUCH INDIVIDUALS HAVE PREYED ON THE LEGITIMATE
DESIRES OF OUR PEOPLE FOR THEIR CONDITIONS TO BE IMPROVED, THAT THEY MAKE ALL
SORTS OF PROMISES.
BUT IT IS ONE THING TO
PROMISE AND ANOTHER THING TO DELIVER.
I AM NOT ONE FOR MAKING
GRANDIOSE PROMISES.
RATHER THAN PROMISES, I
BELIEVE IN POLICIES.
A PROMISE IS AN
INDICATION TO DO A FUTURE ACTION.
A POLICY IS A PLAN TO
ACHIEVE FUTURE GOALS.
I BELIEVE IN SETTING
GOALS AND COMING UP WITH REALISTIC PLANS AND POLICIES TO ACHIEVING THOSE GOALS.
.
TO ME, LEADERSHIP IS
HAVING THE DISCIPLINE TO COMMIT TO ONE’S GOALS UNTIL THEY ARE A REALITY.
I HAVE SUCCEEDED IN
RUNNING MY PRIVATE ENTERPRISES WHICH NOW EMPLOY 50,000 NIGERIANS BECAUSE I
BELIEVE IN POLICIES AND I HAVE THE DISCIPLINE TO STAY WITH THEM UNTIL THEY
BECOME REALITY.
IT IS MY DESIRE TO RUN
FOR THE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT OF THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA, NOT BECAUSE
I HAVE A BAG FULL OF PROMISES, BUT BECAUSE I AM PREPARED TO LEAD.
OVER THE LAST 18 MONTHS,
I HAVE WORKED WITH THE BEST EXPERTS NIGERIA HAS TO OFFER TO COME UP WITH
POLICIES AND PLANS THAT WHEN IMPLEMENTED WILL GET NIGERIA GOING IN THE RIGHT
DIRECTION AGAIN.
I AM NOT TALKING ABOUT
WHAT I CAN DO. I AM TALKING OF WHAT I HAVE DONE BEFORE.
WHEN I WAS VICE PRESIDENT
OF THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA FROM 1999 TO 2007, I CHAIRED THE NATIONAL
ECONOMIC COUNCIL THAT GAVE NIGERIA HER HIGHEST AND MOST CONSISTENT GDP GROWTH
OF OVER 6% PER ANNUM.
DESPITE THE FACT THAT
CRUDE OIL PRICES AT THAT TIME WERE MUCH LOWER THAN THEY ARE TODAY, UNDER THE
DYNAMIC LEADERSHIP OF PRESIDENT OBASANJO, WE PAID OFF NIGERIA’S ENTIRE FOREIGN
DEBT.
WE ALSO INTRODUCED THE
GSM REVOLUTION THAT SAW NIGERIA GO FROM 100,000 PHONE- LINES TO OVER 100
MILLION TODAY.
WE WERE ABLE TO ACHIEVE
THESE, AND MUCH MORE, BECAUSE WE HAD A PLAN CALLED THE NATIONAL ECONOMIC
EMPOWERMENT AND DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY.
THAT PLAN WORKED, AND
TODAY I HAVE THE PLEASURE OF UNVEILING OUR POLICIES AND STRATEGIES, NOT
PROMISES, TO TAKE NIGERIA FROM WHERE SHE IS RIGHT NOW, TO WHERE SHE NEEDS TO
BE.
THIS IS MY PLAN TO GET
NIGERIA WORKING AGAIN.
A PLAN THAT WILL GIVE
NIGERIAN WORKERS A LIVING WAGE.
A PLAN THAT WILL GIVE
NIGERIA’S YOUTH A WORLD-CLASS EDUCATION.
A PLAN THAT WILL EMPOWER
NIGERIAN WOMEN, REDUCE MATERNAL MORTALITY AND INCREASE THEIR FINANCIAL
STABILITY.
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A PLAN THAT WILL CATER
FOR THE ELDERLY, SO OUR PEOPLE ARE NOT AFRAID OF GROWING OLD.
A PLAN THAT WILL INVEST
IN OUR FAILING INFRASTRUCTURE
BUT ABOVE ALL, THIS IS A
PLAN THAT WILL HELP CREATE JOBS BECAUSE IN MY MANY TRAVELS ACROSS OUR GREAT
NATION, THE ONE THING I CONSTANTLY HEAR, IS THAT OUR PEOPLE NEED JOBS.
WITHOUT JOBS, OUR PEOPLE
CANNOT AFFORD TO FEED THEIR FAMILIES AND OUR CHILDREN LIVE IN POVERTY.
WITHOUT JOBS, THERE IS
CRIME, DRUG USE AND INSECURITY.
WITHOUT JOBS, WHERE IS
THE HOPE FOR A BETTER LIFE AND A BETTER FUTURE?
TODAY WE WILL BEGIN THE
PROCESS OF SHARING OUR POLICIES THAT FORM MY PLAN TO CREATE JOBS, RESTRUCTURE
THE POLITY, AND GET NIGERIA WORKING AGAIN.
PLEASE ALLOW ME TO GIVE
YOU A BRIEF SUMMARY.
IF ELECTED PRESIDENT, I
WILL BE PRO-ACTIVE IN ATTRACTING INVESTMENTS AND SUPPORTING THE 50 MILLION
SMALL AND MEDIUM-SCALE ENTERPRISES ACROSS NIGERIA FOR THE PURPOSE OF DOUBLING
THE SIZE OF OUR GDP TO 900 BILLION DOLLARS BY 2025.
THESE INVESTMENTS WILL
CREATE A MINIMUM OF 2. 5 MILLION JOBS ANNUALLY AND LIFT AT LEAST 50 MILLION
PEOPLE FROM POVERTY IN THE FIRST 2 YEARS.
MY TEAM AND I WILL ALSO
HELP CREATE JOBS BY INNOVATING FLAGSHIP PROGRAMMES SUCH AS THE NATIONAL OPEN
APPRENTICESHIP PROGRAMME THROUGH WHICH WE SHALL ENHANCE THE CAPACITY OF
MASTER-CRAFTSMEN AND WOMEN TO TRAIN ONE-MILLION NEW APPRENTICES EVERY YEAR.
OUR NATIONAL INNOVATION
FUND AND SME VENTURE CAPITAL FUND INITIATIVES WILL PROVIDE STABLE AND
SUSTAINABLE LONG-TERM SUPPORT TO ASPIRING ENTREPRENEURS.
MY PLAN TO RESTRUCTURE
NIGERIA WILL LEAD TO A VAST INCREASE IN THE INTERNALLY GENERATED REVENUE, BOTH
FOR THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT AND THE STATES VIA THE MATCHING GRANTS THAT WE WILL
PROVIDE TO STATE GOVERNMENTS THAT INCREASE THEIR OWN REVENUE.
LET ME BE CLEAR, NO STATE
WILL RECEIVE LESS FUNDING THAN THEY GET TODAY – IN FACT ALL WILL RECEIVE MORE
AND THE HARDER A STATE WORKS THE MORE THEY WILL GET.
AND I AM NOT JUST
PRESENTING THESE POLICIES TO YOU, I WANT YOU TO OWN THEM. TAKE A LOOK AT THEM.
YOU CAN VIEW THEM AT ATIKU.ORG, AND YOU WILL HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO
PROVIDE YOUR FEEDBACK.
I WILL ALSO GIVE THE OPPORTUNITY
FOR ANYONE IN NIGERIA TO HAVE THEIR SAY ON NATIONAL TELEVISION.
THESE ARE NOT JUST ATIKU
ABUBAKAR’S PLANS, THESE WILL BE OUR PLANS.
YOURS AND MINE.
I STARTED OUT AS AN
ORPHAN SELLING FIREWOOD ON THE STREETS OF JADA IN ADAMAWA, BUT GOD, THROUGH THE
NIGERIAN STATE, INVESTED IN ME AND HERE I AM TODAY.
IF NIGERIA WORKED FOR ME,
I OWE IT AS MY DUTY TO MAKE SURE THAT NIGERIA ALSO WORKS FOR YOU, YOUR FAMILY
AND YOUR FRIENDS.
IT IS TIME TO GET NIGERIA
WORKING AGAIN, AND THESE ARE THE PLANS AND POLICIES I HAVE FOR ACHIEVING THAT.
I APPEAL TO YOU TO JOIN
ME ON THIS JOURNEY TOWARDS A BETTER LIFE FOR ALL NIGERIANS.
THANK YOU FOR WATCHING
AND LISTENING. MAY GOD BLESS YOU AND MAY GOD BLESS THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF
NIGERIA.
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