ATIKU REVEALS PLANS TO TURN NIGERIA AROUND IF ELECTED PRESIDENT IN 2019

Ex Vice President Atiku Abubakar.

Ex Vice President Atiku Abubakar, who recently renounced his membership of the ruling All Progressives Party (APC) and returned to his former party, the Peoples’ Democratic Party, PDP, has been speaking on the plans he has for Nigeria.

It’s public knowledge that the Waziri Adamawa has never hidden his desire to lead the country again, in the capacity of the President in the forthcoming dispensation.  

Earlier in the week, he was at the Chatham House, London, the United Kingdom, where he spoke at a forum, tagged “Get Nigeria Working Again” (please see photos on the events gallery). He used the occasion to outline his plans to his audience on how he passionately desires to bring fortunes to Nigeria, where he was Vice President for two-terms of eight years under former President Olusegun Obasanjo.

Here are the excerpts of what we pieced together from a series of tweets posted from the event venue.

“I’m not surprised that President Buhari

called Nigerian youths lazy…

He’s not an employer of labour.”

ON THE ECONOMY:

Restructuring Nigeria’s economy and polity is a necessity, not an option. That’s why I’ll restructure Nigeria in six months if elected president. It will foster a spirit of freedom in a diverse nation and nurture strong and democratic government.  

I’ve always said oil is not Nigeria’s greatest asset. Our greatest asset is our youths who created Nollywood out of nothing and an entertainment industry that is second to none in Africa.

The development of agriculture in Nigeria shouldn’t just be looked at a subsistence level. We must learn from South Africa and commercialise our agriculture.

I will make certain rivers are dredged to open up the hinterlands of the North. Licenses would be given to state governments to begin immediate exploitation of resources in their jurisdictions.

 I will extend railways to connect workers to jobs, suppliers to buyers, students to universities, and parents to their children in every major city in every state.

Nigeria must have a stable and predictable exchange rate to allow investors to plan long-term.  I am not a supporter of multiple exchange rates.

Ex Vice President Atiku Abubakar, at the Chatham House, London.

WHY MOST STATES IN NIGERIA ARE POOR:

Some Nigerian states are poor not because they are not receiving a fair share of oil money but because they are not receiving a fair shot at true federalism. Only restructuring can correct that.

When I talk about restructuring, I am not talking about just constitutional tweaks, I am talking about a cultural revolution. It is not about re-shuffling a few responsibilities or resources, but about disrupting the authoritarian politics our democracy has inherited.

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If we want Nigeria to succeed, we must break with the misguided notion that the Federal Government, or the President, knows best, and that no one else can be trusted. 

The question now is: why are we saddled with a heavy and almost unsustainable debt burden twelve years after President Olusegun Obasanjo and I provided the leadership that paid off Nigeria’s entire foreign debt of $32 billion in one fell swoop?

My idea is for the introduction of Matching Grants to be taken from the revenue accruable to the Federal Government for the purpose of matching IGR of each state in order to encourage states to become self-reliant.

These are some of the ways I believe Nigeria’s states can improve their capacity, increase their revenues & better manage their local economies which are critical to safety, prosperity & welfare of all Nigerians and will allow my homeland to realize its true potential.

We will streamline the operations of the Sovereign Wealth Fund, the Excess Crude Account and the Stabilization Account which is currently embedded in the Revenue Allocation Formula for more effective stabilization outcomes.

ON EDUCATION: 
We have to ensure the minimum amount of resources are allocated & invested in education & health. We will impose penalties for states that don’t comply. 1.6m Nigerians sit university entrance exams every year, but we only 600,000 places are available. $1bn spent on paying fees in Ghana schools by Nigerians.

POVERTY ERADICATION AND CITIZENS EMPOWERMENT:

I was raised by my mother & established a micro finance bank where 80% of loans go to women. We raised 45,000 families out of poverty - with 98% recovery rate from female entrepreneurs. If you want to tackle poverty, focus on women’s empowerment.

We need a Nigeria that challenges our leadership to create wealth in every layer of government and make it work for our citizens. Propaganda is a poor substitute for a proper agenda!

There has not been a year in the last twenty years that I have not set up a new enterprise to employ Nigerians. The latest being that we brought the Chicken Cottage franchise to Nigeria which will be creating direct and indirect jobs all across the country.

ON UNITY OF NIGERIA:

For Nigeria to be successful we must not only be united as a people but we must also be united in the protection of our environment. The price of economic prosperity must not come at the cost of destroying the one resource that makes our every day existence possible - Earth.

ON THE “NIGERIAN YOUTHS ARE LAZY” CONTROVERSY:

I’m not surprised that President Buhari called Nigerian youth lazy…he’s not an employer of labour.

I own businesses and I am an employer of young people. I don’t agree with any assertion that the youths are lazy. They need education and opportunities.

Our youths are charting new frontiers; creating a huge tech industry on their own! Their entrepreneurial spirit, work ethic, and creative abilities are things of pride and should be applauded, encouraged and nurtured.

LAST LINE:

I am pleased to lead a business round table at the Institute of Directors in London to share my vision for the future economic development of Nigeria with a host of international business and financial leaders.

I particularly want to thank Nigerian nationals who are present here today. Your love for Nigeria is evident in that you have left your regular pursuits to be here to interact with lovers of Nigeria. Your presence inspires me.

It was a pleasure to meet Dr Liam Fox, the UK‘s Secretary of State for International Trade, yesterday. We discussed the importance of a trade deal between the UK and Nigeria post-Brexit which would be excellent for both our countries.

Kindly drop your comments.