By Ayo Kehinde
Presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has reaffirmed his commitment to a peaceful conduct of the 2023 presidential election during an appearance at the Chatham House in London, the United Kingdom, on Monday.
According to him election violence and malpractices will dent the image of the country as an emerging democracy that is a model to the rest of Africa by virtue of its large population and biggest economy. He spoke on the topic: ‘Nigeria’s 2023 Elections: Security & Economic Development and Its Foreign Policy Imperatives’.
He said;
“I stand firmly against all forms of electoral violence and intimidation. Having spent most of my career in the political opposition, I have long fought against electoral malpractice and any attempts to extinguish the legitimate choice of voters. I will continue to do so.
“And I urge all my fellow contestants in this election to do the same. Let the sovereign will of the people decide the path of our nation. And let this election be determined by voters making their choice freely rather than the domineering intimidation of the troublesome few.
“For one, as Africa’s most populous country and the continent’s largest economy, it is generally acknowledged that the fortunes of the African continent and indeed the Black race is tied directly to the health of Nigeria.
“Also the Nigerian elections of 2023 are coming up at a time when the country’s immediate geographical neighbourhood of West and Central Africa is undergoing serious political turmoil that has manifested itself in the incursion of the military to power in a number of countries. In spite of the legitimate concerns being expressed by observers, Nigerians are resolutely committed to democracy, regardless of their political differences.
“Nigeria shares direct land borders with four sister African countries with whose peoples Nigerians also share historical and cultural affinities.
“This effectively means that the relationship between Nigeria and its immediate neighbours is much more than just a geographical expression.
“To be fully secure at home, Nigeria has always believed it must be the brothers’ keeper. It was out of this understanding that Africa’s premier regional economic community, ECOWAS, was established in 1975. Uniquely, ECOWAS had embedded in its mandate, the promotion of regional economic integration as a good in its own right and in addition undertook sub-regional peace and security.
“I am convinced, as I am sure most of us are, that the broad principles that enabled successive Nigerian governments to interface development and security, and establish an organic link between national security and economic development with regional peace and prosperity is both impeccable and remains relevant. It is an approach which I commit myself to upholding and advancing,” Tinubu said.
Tinubu promised to tackle the security situation heads on, so that Nigeria can also effectively provide security support for its neighbouring nations.
He noted, “The challenges which have manifested themselves with regard to our national and regional development and security trajectories are very well-known to all of us here: radical extremist violence, terrorism, banditry, kidnapping, human trafficking, trafficking in weapons, trafficking in drugs, climate change and resource driven conflicts etc. Mostly manifesting initially as national problems, these challenges evolved over time into trans-border and multinational challenges.
“We see the thousands of people who have been internally displaced at home or forced into refugee camps abroad. With farming activities disrupted, we have seen shortages of basic food items and food price inflation that are further undermining human security.
“To respond meaningfully to the discontents and to redress the many dislocations arising from them, we must begin by reminding ourselves of that old dictum: Foreign policy is but a continuation of domestic policy.
“As a first step, we must recalibrate domestic policy in order to revamp the foundation on which our quest to pursue human security rests.”
He also said the nation under his watch will place emphasis on the use of technology to improve the agricultural sector for better production and contribution to the nation’s economy.
“The present administration has invested heavily in agriculture, providing loans and expanding the country’s total acreage of cultivated land. We will build on this, but our focus will be on using technology and expertise to accelerate growth and development by providing the critical infrastructure necessary to achieve the commodity transformations in the agriculture value chain.
“Roads, rail, access to ports, and storage infrastructure are what we require to radically transform the agriculture sector and increase its value to the nation. Providing these will be the areas of our focus so that the full potential of our agro economy can be achieved, and we can reap the benefits in jobs, improved economic opportunities and increased prosperity.
“Fixing the perennial riddle of energy supply is another priority. There is no version of the world where Nigeria’s ambitions for itself can be achieved without solving the problem of how to provide energy to homes and businesses across the country. It is time to recognise that the centralised approach to energy policy and infrastructure is not an optimal arrangement and is unlikely to improve by mere tinkering around the sides.
“The Federal government as regulator and operator, and price fixer is a broken model and one that we fully intend to fix if elected.
He said there is a close tie between national security and economic development and his administration would uphold such a policy that maintains the country’s territorial integrity and well-being of its people, taking into consideration the relationship with its neighbours that is more than a geographical expression because of shared historical, political and economic past.
Banditry, human trafficking, drugs, terrorism are challenges which evolved over time and would be tackled headlong, he assured.
His said his “government must act as a catalyst and address monetary and fiscal policies to improve annual growth rate of the economy above 7% so that employment situation would improve, and the economy grow in leap and bounds before ten years.”
During the interactive session, Tinubu was asked 10 questions bordering on what he would do to solve many economic, health, security, rape and diaspora voting now that the new Nigeria National Petroleum Company Limited, NNPC, has stopped remitting money to the national treasury.
Surprisingly, Tinubu before taking on the questions said as a team player, he would share the with some members of his team, namely former Lagos Commissioner for Informationa and Strategy, Dele Alake, Governor Nasri el-Rufai of Kaduna State, his Cross River counterpart, Professor Ben Ayade, one-time Commissioner for Finance in Lagos, Wale Edun, APC Woman Leader, Beta Edun and Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajiagbamila.
On the question about his age and identity, he said; “When I was born in March 1952, nobody knew I would join politics, talkless of running for President. My records have been consistent and there was no mutilation. I am a Tinubu proper….those without history and track records dwell in lies against me. One of the presidential candidates have been rumoured not to be a Nigerian, we never dwell on that, we have serious matters to talk about. I’m a graduate of Chicago State University, by the way, I’ve collected my original Certificate from Chicago, I was trained as an accountant by Deloitte, I reached the pinnacle of my career at ExxonMobil. Who among my opponents have these records? That’s why they dwell on cheap propaganda.”
“I’ve had a very good exposure in life, my record is consistent in the school, in the university, they are now convinced that they wasted their money and their time. The record is there, the transcript is there showing March 1952,” he said.
“I’m not claiming another father, I am Tinubu and Tinubu proper. If they want DNA, they could as well request it from us. One of them has even been accused of not being a Nigerian citizen, I didn’t touch that area.
“Equally, it remains the same, Deloitte, Chicago State University where I graduated from has attested to that. Now, I can announce that I have received my original replacement degree certificate from them,” he explained.
“Deloitte trained me as an accountant. Mobil Oil has attested to my record, outstanding record, I got to the pinnacle of my career in the private sector. Who among them can brag about that?” he queried.
On oil theft and security, Alake answered that given the population size of 200 million people, the country would need to increase personnel of security and tackle oil theft head on. Adding his voice to it, el Rufai said, : “The Bola Tinubu admin will address the insecurity with effective policing at the federal state and local government levels. Training, recruitment and equipment of personnel must change from the current method. Challenges of separatism, oil theft and terrorism require a different approach. Proliferation of small arms must be eradicated with other the cooperation of countries like Sudan, Niger and Chad.
Tinubu also chipped in by saying that youths are our greatest assets for tomorrow.
At this juncture, he asked Lagos state, Babajide Sanwo-olu to stand, addressing him as one of the youths he had groomed who was on the driver’s seat effectively managing Lagos, one of the largest economies in Africa.
On the plan for the diaspora to vote, Tinubu said that would come with future developments after the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, has being able to firm up better arrangements for the conduct of a free and fair polls in the country.
Other dignitaries in his entourage were Jigawa State governor, Abubakar Badaru; former Ekiti State Governor, Kayode Fayemi, Dave Umahi of Ebonyi State and Mohammed Badaru Abubakar of Jigawa State.
