Thousands of Lagos residents were taken by surprise yesterday when the presidential candidate of ACPN, Dr Oby Ezekwesili was sported on the streets of Lagos during her presidential campaign.
The presidential candidate who was seen trekking several streets of Lagos with her supporters reiterated her commitment to bring a true change to Nigerians if elected the next president.
Ezelkesili who lamented the current state of the nation, while speaking with some market women in Yaba, encouraged the common citizens to rise to the task of taking power back from the few people that have subjected citizenry to woes.
According to her, 80 per cent of Nigerian citizens are living in abject poverty due to the power that has been entrusted into the hands of selfish leaders.
The ACPN presidential candidate, who also lamented that Nigeria was now known as world’s poverty capital, said her government would operate an economy driven by private sector, adding that an enabling environment for investors to establish would be provided.
She maintained that she will run an all-inclusive government where education will be the new oil and people will be the new economy.
“Today, we are known as the world capital of poverty, we overtook Indian a country that is seven times our population by having 87 million Nigerians living in poverty.
“According to the analysis that produced that result, the number could grow and double as our populations grow and double. One thing that we know in the world of development is that poverty could destabilize any country, even if the world of development did not tell us that theoretically, we could see from what happened in the regions where there is prolific poverty. How many of you will want to see the replay of the Northeast in the rest of the regions in our country?” declaring “poverty is a destabilizer therefore we must tackle it in farces sense of urgency.”
She said her position accounted for the reason why poverty eradication was the flagship programme of her party, promising that once elected president, the menace would be tackled headlong.
“That is why eradication of poverty is the flagship program of our party. When we are elected into office we will tackle poverty. We will build a prosperous economy,” she assured.
Ezekwesili, who visited Tejuoso Market to sell her party’s programmes to traders and artisans, reiterated her commitment to resolve to operate private sector-driven economy.
“When you have an economy that the private sector is operating, there will be jobs,” she said.
“We always say that the fastest way to take people out of poverty is to give them jobs. When you have an economy driven by private sector, many opportunities for jobs will be provided. And when the people who have these jobs are operating at higher productivity level, their income will increase and as their income increases they are lifting themselves out of poverty.
“But more importantly is the need to provide the enabling environment for investors to come and establish. And investors will come if we make our environment conducive for doing business. The investors will establish and they will need workers and we will supply them the worker and they will pay them.”
Speaking further, Ezekwesili said the ACPN was on a rescue mission to deliver the country from backwardness and underdevelopment, adding: “I am not running to be president, am running to lead the citizens’ movement that will rescue our country for all of us.”
“Clearly, Our country has had president but what our country is in need of now, is rescue and the rescue cannot be done by one or two people, it cannot be done by one strong person who has the idea, it has to be a collective efforts of both the governed and those that want to govern, this set of people must come together in a place of agreement, resolute, ”She maintained.
