The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Friday, November 11 launched its ‘Recover Nigeria’ campaign at a breakfast meeting in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja ahead of the 2023 presidential election.
The event which was organized by the Strategic Communications Directorate of the PDP Presidential Campaign Council (PCC) provided an opportunity for the party’s presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar to interact with young people from the Abuja business community.
Speaking at the session, Atiku said the ministry of Niger Delta should be situated in the oil-rich region and not in Abuja.
His words:
“In my proposal, I said the ministry of Niger Delta should be situated in the Niger Delta. Whether it is Port Harcourt or any other place, the responsibility is to develop the infrastructure and human capital and so on of the Niger Delta.”
Atiku further lamented that although billions of naira are allocated to the ministry annually, it ends up in private pockets.
On his plans for the ministry, he stated:
“I will make sure the ministry develops all the infrastructures, and educational institutions are fully equipped and well funded. It is not only resource control that is the meaning of restructuring.
“The PDP government created the SMEDAN to fund small businesses and that is why there were thousands of flourishing small businesses that engaged young men and women during our tenure, that also sparked the growth in our economy.
“You have tasted PDP, you said you wanted to change, you voted for change and you have seen what the change brought for you – poverty, insecurity.
“So, it is clear there is a record for you to look at, so if your choice is based on patriotism and the performance of a given government you know that you cannot compare PDP with APC.”
Atiku also said Nigeria has lost its big brother status in West Africa, saying the APC-led administration has been docile in playing a leading role in the sub-region.
His words:
“I have visited some West African countries in the last few months, and what I told them is Nigeria will be back. Nigeria has been retreating in the past seven years, did you hear about Nigeria again in ECOWAS?
“I told those presidents that I will bring back ECOMOG, I will ensure multinational forces to ensure regional security, peace, and stability. So that all we can deal with this insecurity decisively.
“We brought back peace in Liberia, in Sierra Leone, if PDP is elected we will resume our leadership position in West Africa.
“If we don’t secure the country, businesses will not be safe, farmers will not go to the farm. But once we secure the country, our businesses will be safe. Everybody will be safe to operate where he wants to operate.”
On his part, the PDP vice presidential candidate and governor of Delta state, Senator Ifeanyi Okowa said if elected into government, the Atiku administration will invest heavily in agriculture.
He also said under the PDP-led government, the economy will be private sector-led driven, adding that they will create an enabling environment for businesses to thrive.
Okowa added that Atiku has the experience and capacity to deal with complex issues in governance as a former vice president.
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