The Accord Party‘s presidential candidate, Dr Gbenga Hashim, has urged Nigerians to reject the notion that the country must remain underdeveloped, calling on citizens to take greater responsibility for shaping Nigeria’s future ahead of the 2027 presidential election.
Hashim made the call in an Independence Day message issued in Abuja, arguing that Nigeria’s prolonged underdevelopment was not caused by a lack of resources but by the failure to effectively harness its human, natural and institutional capacity.
He identified poverty, human trafficking, insecurity, institutional capture, a weakened civil service and deteriorating security infrastructure as some of the challenges limiting the country’s development despite its vast resources.
“Nigeria is not a poor country. We have behaved like a poor country because we have consistently underutilised the enormous capacity available to us,” he said.
Hashim said the effects of poor governance extended beyond economic indicators, affecting the security, dignity and prospects of ordinary Nigerians.
He argued that unemployment, insecurity and human trafficking were more likely to flourish where people lacked economic opportunities and institutions were unable to protect vulnerable citizens.
“You cannot permanently defeat trafficking without defeating the conditions that make human beings vulnerable to trafficking,” he said.
The Accord candidate said the 2027 election should give voters an opportunity to demand clear policy programmes, measurable targets and accountability from political candidates, rather than allowing campaigns to centre on personalities, ethnicity, religion or slogans.
“Nigeria belongs to Nigerians. We must stop behaving as spectators in the affairs of our own country,” Hashim said.
Economic agenda
Hashim said an Accord administration would seek to grow Nigeria’s economy to $4tn within eight years, with production, manufacturing, agriculture, energy, technology and services forming the basis of the proposed expansion.
He said Nigeria needed to move away from an economy largely dependent on distributing resource revenues towards one driven by production and value addition.
As part of his economic agenda, Hashim reiterated his proposal to increase crude oil production to at least four million barrels per day within 24 months of taking office.
He said the target would be pursued through the recovery of commercially viable shut-in wells, improved security, investment in production infrastructure, more efficient crude evacuation and reforms aimed at reducing petroleum production costs.
However, he stressed that increased oil output should also support domestic industrialisation.
“Four million barrels a day cannot simply mean four million barrels exported. Nigerian crude must power Nigerian industry,” he said.
Hashim also reaffirmed his proposal for a starting sustainable petrol price of ₦605 per litre, with a longer-term ambition of reducing the price to between ₦200 and ₦300 per litre.
He said the proposed policy would focus on reducing the underlying cost of producing and delivering energy rather than returning to what he described as an opaque subsidy system.
The candidate said Nigeria’s oil and gas resources should serve as the foundation for a competitive energy and industrial sector, including expanded crude production, refining, petrochemicals, gas processing, electricity generation, pipelines and storage infrastructure.
“Nigeria must stop exporting the raw material and importing the finished value. We must capture the value chain here,” he said.
According to Hashim, reliable and affordable energy would be crucial to reviving manufacturing and lowering production costs across the economy.
Regional integration and youth employment
Hashim also proposed making West African integration a central component of Nigeria’s foreign policy, arguing that the region offered significant opportunities for economic expansion.
He said Nigerian manufacturers, farmers, energy companies, financial institutions and technology firms should be positioned to serve a larger integrated West African market.
“Our neighbourhood is not a burden, we are one family. West Africa is Nigeria’s strategic economic space,” he said.
On Nigeria’s young population, Hashim said the country’s demographic growth could become a major economic advantage if government invested in technical education, professional skills and productive employment.
“Our young population should be Nigeria’s greatest economic asset. We must give them the skills and opportunities to turn their energy into wealth,” he said.
He also called for reforms to the civil service and other public institutions, arguing that ambitious economic targets would require a more effective and accountable state.
“We cannot build a $4 trillion economy with institutions that cannot perform. The Nigerian state itself must be rebuilt,” Hashim said.
He said Independence Day should serve as a reminder that political independence needed to be matched by economic and institutional independence.
“The Nigeria we want cannot be outsourced. It cannot be imported. It must be built by Nigerians,” he said.
Hashim said the 2027 election would give Nigerians an opportunity to determine the country’s future direction.
“We are offering vision. We are offering leadership. But the ultimate power belongs to Nigerians,” he said.
He added: “Our independence gave us ownership of Nigeria. It is time to exercise that ownership.
