All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential candidate, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu has assured Nigerians and stakeholders of the party from South-South region that he would lead the country to build back better and stronger even in difficult time, if elected next President.
At a TownHall meeting with party stakeholders on national transformation and industrialisation at the Cultural Centre, Calabar on Tuesday, Tinubu drew parallel from the experience of the United States during its civil war, and charged Nigerians and party members to focus on what the country can accomplish.
He said: “We can build in the middle of difficulty, the US was fighting the civil war and still building rail track. We should focus on the things that we can accomplish. We have a lot – there is the waterfront here, we have minerals here, we have arable land, we must conquer hunger, we cannot allow hunger conquer us”.
The well-attended event had in attendance Vice Presidential candidate, Senator Kashim Shettima; Cross River State Governor Ben Ayade; Director-General of the campaign council and Governor of Plateau State, Hon. Simon Lalong; Deputy Director-General and former APC National Chairman, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole; Senator Florence Ita-Giwa; Senator Victor Idoma Egba; former Akwa Ibom State Governor Godswill Akpabio; former Petroleum Resources Minister Don Etiebet; Minister of State Power, Jeddy Agba; and Minister of State for Labour, Barrister Festus Keyamo.
Others at the event included former Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu; Chairman of of the Board of Trustees of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund, Kashim Ibrahim-Imam; former Speaker of House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Dimeji Bankole; and APC National Woman Leader, Dr Beta Edu.
Tinubu pointed out that, for the nation to experience economic recovery, less focus should be placed on crude oil while harnessing other areas.
The APC presidential candidate promised to work towards industrialisation while also focusing on the production of goods and services across the country.
“My campaign is built on the firm conviction that our greatest good and best deeds still lie in front of us and not in our past.
“The industrialisation of our economy represents a most vital step towards achieving the Nigeria of our dreams.
“From its very beginnings, our nation’s economy was established on an incomplete foundation. It was built to rely too heavily on oil exports. This means we have always experienced a large gap in the national economic structure. Greater industrialisation shall fill this gap through the production of more and better goods which improve our standard of living while creating better jobs, providing workers with a living wage and establishing businesses that will drive this economy for generations to come.
“Because of this gap in our economic structure and the resultant lack of economic activity, Nigeria has experienced unacceptably high rates of unemployment for several decades. The problems this causes for our society are not limited to simply slowing our economic progress. This gap has affected our nation in profound ways, straining the social fabric in ways that no nation wishes for. Now is the time to repair these fissures our country should never have had to experience.
“Our industrial policy will prioritise strategic industries vital to the development of our national economy. We will grow the nation’s industrial base to provide decent jobs and improving wages to our nation’s ever increasing urban population”, Tinubu said.
On how this can better be achieved, Tinubu said that primary and secondary industrial hubs would be created across each geopolitical zone in the country. He also promised to bring Cross River State into the industrialisation plan through the state’s resources.
He further said: “Our industrial plan encourages manufacturing on a massive scale across the country. Nigeria will become known as a nation that produces high quality goods worthy of export to anywhere in the world. We shall use an array of policy measures. On the fiscal side, we shall employ tax credits and holidays, youth employment incentives, import relief, export credits and well-tailored subsidies where necessary.
“Cross River State will play a leading role in our economic uplift. This state is blessed with limestone, clay, salt, tin, granite, basalt, quartzite, and kaolin deposits in commercial quantities.
“Our policies will afford local artisans and craftsmen throughout the region the necessary tools to provide for their families and, ultimately, boost overall economic activity for the national good. I enjoyed the stimulating cultural entertainment the performers displayed. This is a town hall meeting of great minds, brains and visions. My concern is the development of Nigeria, this is a talented nation and moving this country forward is a task that must be done. Let’s put together and conquer hunger by using the God’s great space on agriculture”.
A major highlight of the TownHall was when the APC candidate brought Senator John Owen Enoh and Barrister Ekpere Mary and reunited them with Ayade and others.
He described Cross Rivers State as a land of joy and love.
“Cross River is blessed in agriculture. Oil palm, rubber, cocoa, cashews, cassava, yam, rice, plantain, and bananas are abundant and already being processed, strengthening the agro-allied value chain in ways that create better jobs and raise the standard of living”, he said.
He also praised Ayade for already starting the industrialisation drive in the state.
“The Ayade-led administration has done tremendous work to develop the processing capacity within the state with the construction of the Ogoja Rice Mill, Ikom Cocoa Mill, Rice Seed and seedling centre.
“The Governor has also gone further to develop the infrastructure for the movement of goods by land with the proposed Super-Highway, by sea with the proposed Bakassi Deep Seaport, and by air with the construction of the Obudu Cargo Airport”, he said.
In his own address, Ayade saidthat the focus of the next administration should be on human capital and Gross Domestic Product as a measure of economic growth should shift to Human Happiness Index, adding that government must focus on industrialisation to create jobs for the masses.
“We must move from GDP to the Human Happiness Index. When God has empowered you, it is for the people”, said Ayade
The Director-General of APC Presidential Campaign Council, Lalong assured the people that Tinubu has capacity to provide the leadership that will create prosperity for all Nigerians.
“Asiwaju turned mammy water in Lagos ocean to Money Water through his brains”, he added.
