Nigeria Won’t Sink Under My Watch – Tinubu

Amid a mammoth crowd, Presidential Candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Ahmed Tinubu, on Tuesday said he will not allow the country to sink under his watch if elected president on February 25, 2023.

Speaking during the official flag-off of his campaign at the Rwang Pam Township Stadium, Jos, Plateau State, he pledged to build on the achievements of President Muhammadu Buhari.

Our correspondents report that the stadium was filled to capacity as bigwigs of the party and their supporters trooped to the venue.

The Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, Speaker of the House Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila,  serving governors including AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq (Kwara), Abdullahi Ganduje (Kano), Nasir El-Rufai (Kaduna), Abubakar Sani-Bello (Niger), Yahaya Bello (Kogi), Abubakar Badaru (Jigawa), Prof. Ben Ayade (Cross River), Atiku Bagudu (Kebbi) and Abdullahi Sule (Nasarawa) attended the rally.

 Other governors who attended the rally were; Babagana Zulum (Borno), Mai Mala Buni (Yobe), Inuwa Yahaya (Gombe), Hope Uzodinma (Imo), Babajide Sanwo-Olu (Lagos), Aminu Bello Masari (Katsina), Dapo Abiodun (Ogun)and Bello Matawalle (Zamfara).

Daily Trust reports that former governors including Rotimi Amaechi, who came second during the presidential primary of the APC, Mohammed Abubakar (Bauchi), Kayode Fayemi (Ekiti) and Ali Modu Sheriff (Borno) were in attendance.

Hope is back – Tinubu 

Tinubu praised Nigerians for believing in the APC to lead the country to progress after years of backwardness under the PDP administration saying, “Hope is back.”

According to him, “One can see greater prosperity and jobs in an economy humming with activity. From the farmer in the rural area to the city boy in a bustling urban centre, each will have productive work to do and a decent home to return to.

“One can see a Nigeria where all who want to will be able to build a decent life from the fruits of their individual and collective endeavour. 

“From this fine vantage point, we see how far we have come. We also see how far we must go and the road that will take us there,” he said. 

According to him, he would continue on the foundation laid by Buhari by improving security, infrastructures, oil exploration in the North East and opening Lake Chad for agriculture and economic opportunities. 

“Mr President, you have provided exceptional service to the nation and party. Your contributions are both positive and enduring. When the history of this period is objectively written, it will smile upon you and treat you with utmost kindness,” he said. 

If elected president, he said his administration will chart the course of progress started by the Buhari administration. 

“We hereby reaffirm our commitment to progressive good governance and to the fruits that such governance can bring to this nation.   

 “February 2023 is more than an election. It is a fight to define the soul of the nation and to determine our collective fate. Do we adhere to the ideals of broadly shared prosperity, competence, peace, justice and compassion toward all? Or do we toss these ideals away, lashing ourselves to the divisive politics of the past or to those whose ranting show they cannot distinguish between fact and fantasy?” he asked. 

of Nigerians for a secure, prosperous future under a united country.” 

Debo Ologunagba, National Publicity Secretary of the party in a statement said the fact that Tinubu made the prayer during his presidential campaign flag-off in Jos, Plateau State is a “Pointer that it was not a slip of tongue but a divine proclamation that the hope for Nigeria, which he harped on can only come from the PDP.”

PDP also noted that the APC presidential candidate had earlier in his address, admitted that Nigerians were “in distress” under the APC but that hope is on the way.

From Ado A. Musa, Dickson S. Adama (Jos), Muideen Olaniyi & Baba Martins (Abuja)