I’ll rescue Katsina from APC misrule ― Lado

SENATOR Yakubu Lado has accused the All Progressive Congress (APC) administration in Katsina state of failure and has vowed to retrieve it and set it back on the path of progress and prosperity.

Speaking to journalists at the weekend in Abuja moments after submitting his expression of interest and nomination forms to vie for the governorship ticket of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), he said he was on a mission to rescue the state from the lack of direction the ruling party has subjected the it to in the last three and half years.

He said: “APC has failed. It has not only failed but it has set back Katsina state over several decades. Under the previous PDP government in Katsina, it was a progressive state with emphasis on human capital development and infrastructure.

“But look at what we have today. The government of APC has eroded all the gains of the last administrations and replaced them with hunger and starvation.

“Today, all the important sectors, be it health, education, agriculture, among others are suffering because the present government lacks the initiative to provide proper leadership.

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“That’s why the people are asking for me to come and save the state. They believe I have the capacity to bring Katsina back on the right course.“

Lado, who represented Katsina South Senatorial District, in the Senate between 2011 and 205, expressed confidence that he would secure the ticket of the PDP in the forthcoming primary, saying that he was best placed to return Katsina state to the party which governed it for 16 years.

“I can assure you that if I get the ticket, PDP will recapture Katsina and bring the good old days back to our people,” he declared.

Also at the at the PDP national secretariat to submit his forms, Senator Phillip Gyunka, who is bidding for the Nasarawa state ticket of the party, blamed greed for PDP’s loss of the state in the last two gubernatorial elections.

Speaking to reporters, he said some people that lost out of the primaries of the party in 2011 and 2015, teamed up with the opposition to work against the PDP for pecuniary gains.

The lawmaker representing Nasarawa North Senatorial District in the National Assembly, therefore, urged party members to imbibe the spirit of sportsmanship to enable the party to recapture the state.

He said party stakeholders must be united and focused after the primary elections, saying:  “In 2011, greed was the centre of focus and those that claimed to be fathers and founders of PDP were deceived.

“When you lose (election), it is good to embrace the spirit of sportsmanship. They were deceived as they diverted the votes of PDP to the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) with the agreement that the CPC governor was going to serve only one term.

“In 2015, the same thing happened. When you lose in a primary and think it is possible to get it at the other side, you are mistaken.”

Gyunka said he would exploit the vast mineral resources in Nasarawa state to lift the welfare of the people if given the opportunity.

He also said he would leverage on the proximity of the state to the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) to raise the Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) of the state.

“I want to transform the state economically by providing good governance for our people,” he added.

Asked if he would support the consensus option in picking a candidate for the party, the ex-banker said the mere thought of the idea was undemocratic.

“Why are we afraid of going into the primaries? Generals are not obtained in the barracks, they are made in the battlefield. So, I believe that everybody should be allowed to go into the primaries,” he declared.