by Kolapo Olapoju
Former Vice President of Nigeria, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar has declared his intention to contest the 2015 presidential elections on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Atiku made the declaration on Wednesday, 24 September, at the Yar Adua centre, Abuja, and in his speech, he harped on the struggles of being a Nigerian and the need to stand firm in the face of adversity and underdevelopment, which bedevils the country.
Here are the ten important things we learnt from Atiku’s speech.
1. Our people have refused to succumb to the despair of their hopelessness. Nigeria can be great again.
2. Some people have argued about the generational shift – I believe it is the responsibility of my generation to offer a shoulder for the youths to learn from. Nigeria should never be subjected to experimentation or learning on the job
3. I grew up as a farm boy, only child. My father was imprisoned by local authorities for allowing me to go to school. At 11-years-old, I lost my father and my whole world fell apart. I am where I am today because i did not give up.
4. In the 20-years I spent in Nigeria public service, I built a reputation as a honest, diligent and hard-working public servant.
5. I became politically active in 1987, because my imagination was captured by the late Shehu Musa Yaradua. My politics has always been guarded by honesty, pursuit of excellence, selflessness.
6. I worked closely with my boss, Olusegun Obasanjo and we established a lot of wonderful achievements. EFCC, Telephone, Capitalisation, International influence, Blueprint for transport system and many more.
7. We have a serous governance deficit. Nigeria is on auto-pilot with no one in charge. We need a strong, competent, decisive and dynamic leadership that can solve Nigeria’s problem.
8. I have what it takes to turn Nigeria around for the better. I have a national responsibility to lead Nigeria and I have come again to answer a call to serve. It is time for change. I am a proud government of change to fix Nigeria
9. I have been asked why I am always seeking to be president, and my answer is this – My penchant for good governance is that of a man who wants to do much for Nigeria. I want to play a leading role in saving Nigeria and improving the lives of our people.
10. I want to lead a government that will invest in people. I want to lead a government that will care for all. I want to assemble the best brains in the land and jointly build the Nigeria of our dreams.
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