Former Vice President and Presidential Candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, (PDP) Atiku Abubakar has spoken of his plan to “get Nigeria working again” if elected President in 2019.
Atiku, who addressed Nigerians on Facebook and Twitter on Monday said he planned to invest in Nigeria’s ‘failing infrastructure as well as providing Nigerian workers a living minimum wage.
“Today, I am formally presenting myself to you as the presidential candidate of not just the @OfficialPDPNig, but of the hopes and aspirations of all Nigerians.
“The most important question in this election is: “Are you better off than you were four years ago? Are we richer or poorer?” That is why our primary focus is on getting Nigeria working again
“I am strongly of the view that I am just one Nigerian and one Nigerian cannot be as wise as all Nigerians. That is why I will offer an inclusive leadership.
“Atiku Abubakar is 100% for 100% of Nigerians, 100% of the time.
“Too often, Nigerians have been promised better governance by those seeking their votes. Such individuals have preyed on the legitimate desires of our people for their conditions to be improved, that they make all sorts of promises.
“I am not one for making grandiose promises. Rather than promises, I believe in policies.
“A promise is an indication to do a future action. A policy is a plan to achieve future goals.
“As the International Monetary Fund stated very recently, it is the failure of this government to have a coherent and comprehensive set of policies combined with poor leadership that has led to its failure to deliver.
“Over the last 18 months, I have worked with the best experts Nigeria has to offer to come up with policies and plans that when implemented will get Nigeria going in the right direction again.
“I am not talking about what I can do. I am talking of what I have done before.
“I was Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria from 1999 to 2007 and in that time, I chaired the National Economic Council that gave Nigeria her highest and most consistent GDP growth of over 6% per annum.
“Despite the fact that crude oil prices at that time were much lower than they are today, under the dynamic leadership of President Olusegun Obasanjo, we paid off Nigeria’s entire foreign debt.
“We also introduced the GSM revolution that saw Nigeria go from 100,000 phone lines to over 100 million today. We were able to achieve these, and much more, because we had a plan.
“That plan worked and today I have the pleasure of unveiling our policies and strategies to take Nigeria from where she is now, to where she needs to be.
“My plan will give Nigerian workers a living wage, My plan will give Nigeria’s youth a world-class education. My plan will empower Nigerian women, reduce maternal mortality and increase their financial stability. My plan will cater for the elderly, so our people are not afraid of growing old. My plan will invest in our failing infrastructure. But above all, my plan will help create jobs because in my many travels across our great nation the one consistent thing I hear wherever I am is that our people need jobs. He said
