Former President of the Senate, Bukola Saraki, has told Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) delegates in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) that having been working for other regions in the past, it is now the turn of the North-Central geopolitical zones to produce the country’s president.
The presidential aspirant under the main opposition party addressed the delegates in Abuja last night, recalling that as the Senate President, he made sure the upper legislative chamber passed the bill creating the position of Mayor for the territory.
He said if elected president, he will transform Abuja into an investment haven and make the indigenes property developers while providing 500,000 units of housing each year.
The former Kwara State, North Central, the governor stated: “I did not start fighting for Abuja today, you all know when I was Senate President, nobody wanted Mayor or for FCT to be in the Constitution and I passed it in the Senate. If you remember, I passed it in the Senate. I fought for it. I passed it in the Senate. Unfortunately, those in the House of Representatives did not do it. I’m taking you back to many years ago. So I am yours, I started it a long time ago, it is not because I’m looking for votes.
“So, if you will have me as president, it means you are also the president. You are the landlord but you have not done one night in the Aso Rock. With your votes, we shall all do one night in the Aso Rock. When I’m president, when people want to come and develop in Abuja, they will respect you. You will take real compensation, not the type of compensation they are paying, and I fight for it for you.
“For those of you who are potential developers, who say that Abuja indigene should not be developers, we will provide support in the housing to enable some of us also to be developers too, you too will be owners of homes.
“It is my plan for 500,000 housing units every year when I’m President so that more people will have homes.
“I understand business, I knew how government works because I’ve been a governor for eight years. I knew how the legislature operates, there is nobody with my own records.
“We have come together to say, it is a time for North Central. This is not just my own, all of us will be making history, it has never happened before. Our children will continue to thank us for many generations because we made a difference. This ticket is not only my ticket, it is our ticket, all of us shall benefit from it.
“And that is why the whole 41 delegates here, not one should go anywhere because this is your own. Nobody leaves his own to go and take somebody else’s own. We will tell them in the past, North Central has worked for other people, It’s time for them now to work for us. After they have worked for us this time, then we can talk about working for them again. This is for us. It is not for just me, It’s for all of us.”
Talking about his record in previous offices held, Saraki advised that Nigerians must elect as president an individual who has the capacity to rescue the country.
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He added: “Today where Nigeria is, 2023 election, we cannot play with it, we cannot just choose anybody. The country is in a very fragile situation. If we don’t put the right person there, God forbid what will happen to Nigeria.
“Today, Nigeria, unfortunately, we have one of the highest records of kidnapping in the world. We have the highest record of children who are not going to school. We have the highest record of terrorism. We have the highest record of unemployment, we have the highest level of poverty. This is what is happening today.
“We must find a president that knows how to rescue Nigeria, you must look at all of us and look at our capacity, measure our capacity, measure the capacity, one who can unite Nigeria because to unite Nigeria, you must check our record. Is this somebody who has been in a position where he has brought people together?
“You all know because your son or your leader has been in the National Assembly for many years.
“You know the National Assembly is first among equals. It’s not like being a Governor. As Governor, you give instructions to your commissioners, you can tell them or commission them not to come to the office for two weeks and he cannot. You cannot tell that to your colleague. So, you must be able to bring collaboration, cooperation and bring people together. That is what Nigeria needs as leadership.
“You must be somebody who did not miss out, a man with whom I feel comfortable that he can lead us. That is what you will look out for among the aspirants, someone who can unite Nigeria.
“Today we have the youths, we have the older people, which aspirant can bring the youth and older people together. I believe it is me that will unite you.
“In Abuja, the most important thing here is the issue of investment. We have seen how Africa has developed over the years. Today in our country, there is no money at all coming from NNPC. Nobody is bringing money into Abuja to invest. You need a president that will encourage people to bring money into Abuja. When you bring money, you expand and you will be better off. There will be more jobs.
“Which of these aspirants can do that? You need someone that is courageous and bold and take decisions.
“Some of you have seen for four years when as senate president, I spoke for Nigeria, I did not shake. This is the kind of President that you want. You need a president that will respect everybody. Everybody will be respected.
“I’ve shown that as governor, as Chairman of governors’ forum. You need a president that has respect internationally because today, you need support internationally especially when you are fighting insecurity. You need a president that can take it on and say now, we must stop this banditry and kidnapping.
“Abuja is the only modern city I know that does not have full 24-hour coverage of security. If you make me president, I will ensure that with technology, everywhere is covered and we can see what is going on in the world today. A lot of you travel and you see it on television that technology has not provided a way in which in your room, you can see any movement. That is what has made our cities thick. My government will ensure that Abuja is like that.”
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