Obi: Nigeria needs independence from corruption, poverty

Peter Obi, presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), says Nigeria has what it takes to be truly great.

He said this in a statement issued on Saturday to mark Nigeria’s 62nd independence anniversary.

According to Obi, despite the challenges affecting the country, there is hope for a better future.

“The catalogue of our national malaise are legion, and range from intermittent collapse of our national power grid; our universities remaining shut for 8 months; soaring inflation rate, extreme poverty; insecurity and visceral violence resulting in mindless bloodletting. Our national wealth, both cash and oil, are reportedly stolen each day with unfettered impunity. Nigeria bleeds literarily and figuratively,” the statement reads.

“These travails are neither measures of national greatness or good leadership. Rather, they represent overarching national interest concerns that must give us pause. They are sobering realities that ought to trigger a deep rethink of our political and leadership trajectory in the months and years ahead.

“As a nation and people, we cannot lose hope or give up. Intractable as our problems are, they are not insurmountable. We can easily overcome them when there is a purposeful and transformative leadership in place; one that will not makes excuses and will not be indifferent to the rule of law, equity and justice.

“Nigeria holds out hope of unfettered development, growth, greatness and indeed, dreams of infinite possibilities. But we must seize the moment. We must rescue and turn our country around. It is our challenge and our duty. We, therefore, cannot ignore the present deafening clarion call for change.

“Today, Nigeria is on the cusp of her national redefinition and rebirth. We are also on the eve of seminal general elections; a critical juncture of hope mixed with understandable trepidation. Yet I am convinced that our collective national fate and our faith in Almighty God, will lead us to an electoral legitimacy in 2023 that will reaffirm that sovereignty in our Republic belongs to the people; and that we can collectively usher in a new and productive Nigeria.

“Nigeria’s morning has come. This is the time for Nigerians to rescue their country from the clutches of failure, rascality and corruption that have held it down for long. That is the true independence Nigeria needs. We need independence from economic brigandage, tribal and religious disunity, poverty and unproductivity. We need independence that will liberate Nigerian youths.”

He added that the challenges do not signify a lack of good ideas or “required human capital”, adding that what the country needs is the right political will to bring about good governance.

He urged Nigerians to support him and Datti Baba-Ahmed, his running mate, in the 2023 polls, adding that they represent the “best hope and promise for a united, secure and productive Nigeria, where our citizens can coexist in our rich diversity as one happy and peaceful family”.

“We offer to Nigerians a transformative leadership that is imbued with competence, capacity, credibility and commitment. Our promise, in keeping with the constitutional mandate of responsibility to protect, is to give assurances that our administration will ensure that Nigerians are fully protected in their homesteads: and that their lives, properties and means of livelihood will always be secure,” the statement reads.

“In seeking to serve Nigeria, Senator Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed and I, stand firm on our resolve to move the nation forward, from consumption to production, and from a sharing formula to a roust production formula.

“We are committed to retooling governance and offering a secure and united Nigeria; a production-centered growth for food security and export; effective legal and institutional reforms (rule of law, corruption and government effectiveness); the leapfrogging of Nigeria from oil dependency to the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR); expanding physical infrastructure through market-driven reforms (unleashing growth-enabling entrepreneurship and market-creating innovations); engendering human capital development that empowers competitiveness and gender balance; and a robust Afrocentric foreign policy that restores Nigeria’s strategic relevance at the bilateral, multilateral and global levels.

“With these commitments, we are convinced that we can build the New Nigeria of our dreams.

“Fellow Nigerians, let us take back our nation from those who have perfected State Capture and build a better society for ourselves and our children.”