Nigeria’s former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar has officially declared his intention to run for the 2023 presidential election on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
He made the declaration in a ceremoney held today, Wednesday, March 23 in Abuja.
According to him, his enduring persistence in contesting for the office of the president of Nigeria is borne out of his passion to rekindle the Nigerian dream.
He said his dream for Nigeria was that there should not be any limit to what a Nigerian wanted to achieve if he was willing to work for it.
“I have contested for the office of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria a couple of times in the past.
“My enduring persistence is borne out of my passion to rekindle the Nigerian dream that I was privileged to live.
“Nigeria is a land of possibility. There is no challenging background that will make any Nigerian give up. I am a living witness to what is possible in Nigeria.”
He, however, said that the dream was not possible without credible and visionary leadership, adding “that is what I want to offer to Nigerians.”
He said that presently Nigeria was in dire need of visionary leadership, saying the fundamental principles and purpose as a nation had never been challenged as it was today.
“I offer myself to rescue the sinking ship. Under my captainship, this ship will sail to a brighter course by the grace of God.”
He described the 2023 election as a referendum to decide whether Nigerians want greatness or continuous destruction.
“It is a choice between two paths: the path of unity and progress or the path of division and backwardness.
“We need a new kind of leadership that will steer us to a positive path. In 2023, we want a President who has ideas on how to fix Nigeria. We want a president who understands, inspires and is empathetic.
“As the election is fast approaching, we should not be distracted from the devastating conditions we are in now.”
Abubakar advised Nigerians to be united and fight their common enemies: the lack of unity, insecurity, poverty, inflation, and unemployment.
Abubakar said that if elected, under his presidency, he would focus on five key areas: Unity of Nigeria, Security, Economy, Education and devolving more resources and powers to the federating units.
Describing himself as the unifier coming to bond the broken union of Nigeria, Abubakar said that his administration if elected would operate an open door for dialogue to hear the grieving voices of all Nigerians.
“Under my presidency, there will be a new Nigeria, where everybody has an equal voice and is heard.
“Throughout my life, I have never looked at Nigerians as divided people.
“In my eyes, all Nigerians are the same. When I see you, I don’t see Yoruba or Hausa or Igbo or Fulani or a northerner or southerner; when I see you, I only see a Nigerian, and I expect the best from you.
“All Nigerians are equal and should be seen and treated equally. There is no unity without justice and fairness. That is why I will deliver leadership of justice and fairness.”
He also pledged to increase the welfare and number of all security forces as well as use of modern technology and intelligence to combat insecurity.
He added that if elected, he would create alternative sources of foreign exchange supply to Nigeria and reduce importation to increase the value of the Naira.
“We will provide access to mechanized farming systems and develop the agricultural value chain. We must diversify our foreign exchange sources through exports of processed agricultural products.”
