Atiku: APC promised 3m jobs annually — but has rendered almost 3m Nigerians jobless

Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar has alleged that almost three million Nigerians have been rendered jobless by the All Progressives Congress (APC) administration.

Atiku said this on Sunday while announcing his defection to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) via his Facebook page.

The former vice-president, who had resigned from the APC in November, said he joined the ruling party hoping it will be the “new force that will help improve life for our people”.

He said: “I was excited about the party’s (APC) manifesto to create 3m new jobs a year.

“The result has not been the change people had been promised or voted for as in the last two years, almost 3m Nigerians have lost their jobs.

“And today we have a record of 25% of people aged between 18 and 25years unemployed. I can see how difficult it is for people to find a job.”

While stating that the key to creating jobs is a strong economy, Atiku said he has found out that the major concern of youth in the country is “if they will be able to get a job for without a job, there will be no means of sustaining themselves or beginning family”.

He added: “And without the security of a job, we cannot have security in our country. So without jobs, there is no future for you or for Nigeria.

“Creating jobs is something that I know about as I have created over 50,000 direct jobs and 250,000 indirect jobs in my own state of Adamawa.

“And I also know how the government can help create the right environment for business to create jobs.”