ENUGU, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA)- The Labour Party presidential candidate, Mr. Peter Obi has greeted Nigerians as the country celebrate 62-years of independence.
The former Anambra State Governor ceased the opportunity to recount the failures and challenges rocking the country, and reiterated that the Obi-Datti administration represents the best hope for the country.
Obi in his 1st October speech made available on Saturday, assured a united, secured and productive Nigeria, where every citizen can coexist in the rich diversity as one happy and peaceful family.
Regretting that many Nigerians are resigned, frustrated and tired of the many years of leadership failure, Obi urged Nigerians to remain thankful, prayerful and hopeful for a brighter future.
“Many of our compatriots remain in captivity held by bandits; millions are living in IDP camps as their homes are now part of ungoverned spaces,” he added.
He also claimed that many Nigerian children go to bed hungry, saying that such children can hardly fathom the concept of independence and freedom; let alone a valid basis for celebration.
He said: “At 62, rather than celebrate our patriotism, nationhood, unity, strength and diversity, Nigerians continue to grapple with the challenges of bad governance, replete with insecurity, worsening economy, corruption, and various forms of abuse of public offices and all manners of impunity.
“Each new day in Nigeria, instead of heralding progress and development, our national population, already weakened by poverty and hardship, are further burdened by new forms of disruptive challenges that are inimical to the societal well being.
“The catalogue of our national malaise are legion, and range from intermittent collapse of our national power grid; our universities remaining shut for 8 months; soaring inflation rate, extreme poverty; insecurity and visceral violence resulting in mindless bloodletting. Our national wealth, both cash and oil, are reportedly stolen each day with unfettered impunity. Nigeria bleeds literarily and figuratively.
He however, expressed optimism that the country will rise again, saying, “As a nation and people, we cannot lose hope or give up. Intractable as our problems are, they are not insurmountable. We can easily overcome them when there is a purposeful and transformative leadership in place; one that will not makes excuse to the people and will not be indifferent to the rule of law, equity and justice.
“Nigeria holds out hope of unfettered development, growth, greatness and indeed, dreams of infinite possibilities. We, therefore, cannot ignore the present deafening clarion call for change.
“Today, Nigeria is on the cusp of her national redefinition and rebirth. We are also on the eve of seminal general elections; a critical juncture of hope mixed with understandable trepidation. Yet I am convinced that our collective national fate and our faith in Almighty God, will lead us to an electoral legitimacy in 2023 that will reaffirm that sovereignty in our Republic belongs to the people; and that we can collectively usher in a new and productive Nigeria.
In seeking to serve Nigeria, he said: “Senator Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed and I, stand firm on our resolve to move the nation forward, from consumption to production, and from a sharing formula to a roust production formula.
“Nigeria’s morning has come. This is the time for Nigerians to rescue their country from the clutches of failure, rascality and corruption that have held it down for long. That is the true independence Nigeria needs. We need independence from economic brigandage, tribal and religious disunity, poverty and unproductivity. We need independence that will liberate Nigerian youths.
“We offer to Nigerians a transformative leadership that is imbued with competence, capacity, credibility and commitment. Our promise, in keeping with the constitutional mandate of responsibility to protect, is to give assurances that our administration will ensure that Nigerians are fully protected in their homesteads: and that their lives, properties and means of livelihood will always be secure.
“We are committed to retooling governance and offering a secure and united Nigeria; a production-centered growth for food security and export; effective legal and institutional reforms (rule of law, corruption and government effectiveness);the leapfrogging of Nigeria from oil dependency to the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR); expanding physical infrastructure through market-driven reforms (unleashing growth-enabling entrepreneurship and market-creating innovations); engendering human capital development that empowers competitiveness and gender balance; and a robust Afrocentric foreign policy that restores Nigeria’s strategic relevance at the bilateral, multilateral and global levels.
“With these commitments, we are convinced that we can build the New Nigeria of our dreams. Fellow Nigerians, let us take back our nation from those who have perfected State Capture and build a better society for ourselves and our children. God bless you and God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”