By Chuks Okocha and Adedayo Akinwale:
In what best typifies a campaign gathering momentum, Presidential Candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Tinubu, yesterday, took a subtle swipe at his Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) rival, Atiku Abubakar, and declared that he would not be a part-time president, who would share his time between living in Dubai and Nigeria.
Tinubu, who gave the assurances at an interactive session with members of the popular Tijjaniyyah sect in Kano, however, said he would concentrate his attention and energy on confronting and surmounting Nigeria’s pressing challenges.But like what the influential media trolls call “clapback”, Atiku too immediately fired back, when he told the people of Kano State to disregard the ‘fluke promises’ made to them by Tinubu, as he and his party, the APC, had never been known to keep their words, adding that he had been out of the country most of the time for undisclosed reasons.
Atiku is known to have since made Dubai his second home and is believed to spend more time in the United Arab Emirate than he does in Nigeria, a personal decision that has become some sort of joke in the nation’s political circle.However, Tinubu, who made veiled reference to this in a statement issued by his Media Office and signed by Tunde Rahman, said, top on his plans were improved electricity, security, giving agriculture full attention, including provision and completion of dams and improved quality education for Nigerians.“I promise to devote 100% of my time and energy to serving Nigeria. You will have it better with me, not 50% in Dubai in the United Arab Emirate, 50% in Nigeria,” he said.
At the meeting, members of the Tijjaniyyah sect led by leader, Sheikh Bashir Tijjani Usman Zangon Bareebah, presented a long list of issues the sect wanted the APC presidential candidate to address, when he gets to office.In attendance at the session held inside the African Hall of Kano Government House, were his running mate, Senator Kashim Shettima, and about six governors of the party, including Chairman Progressives Governors’ Forum and Kebbi State Governor, Atiku Bagudu, Abdullahi Ganduje (Kano), Abubakar Badaru (Jigawa), Bello Matawalle (Zamfara), Babajide Sanwo-olu (Lagos), former APC Interim Chairman, Chief Bisi Akande and some of the party’s National Working Committee members (NWC).
Laying the template for interaction, the sect demanded that the Tinubu presidency should ensure inclusion of their members in cabinet and other government appointments, reduction in Hajj fares and assistance in concluding Tijjaniyyah University under construction in Kano.Responding, Tinubu said the answers to some of their demands were contained in his manifesto unveiled last week by President Muhammadu Buhari, stressing that he was contesting to be the president, because of his commitment to better the lives of all Nigerians.
Tinubu also met with business leaders from Northern Nigeria Saturday night in Kano, where he assured the business community of a better business environment through implementation of well thought-out policies that would revive dead and ailing manufacturing companies in Kano and across the country.At the forum to share insights with the Northern business community, business leaders and captains of industry from across the North openly endorsed Tinubu and his running mate, Senator Kashim Shettima.
Assuring the northern business leaders of a better business environment with well-thought-out policies that would revitalise industries and open up new opportunities, Tinubu identified the link between Kano as a centre of commerce and his economic plan for Nigeria.He said, “There is a strong nexus between the place of Kano as a centre of prosperity and my plan for Nigeria. What I pledge is a revamped economy, which will renew the hope of our people. Our country needs multiple centres of prosperity, and we intend to achieve that by adding value across all sectors of our economy.
“As I said during my speech at the Arewa House on Monday, Nigeria is sitting on a goldmine. There is no state in Nigeria that is lacking in one resource or the other.“We are determined to explore and exploit these resources to the maximum benefits of our people. Kano, for example, has huge agricultural potentials and important mineral resources underneath its ground like gold, silver, nickel, tin ore and columbite. Each of these, if properly harnessed, can add significantly to our economy as a country.”The APC standard bearer added that, Kano’s arable land and its comparative advantage in agriculture would be further expanded to make the state and northern region industrial hubs in sub-Saharan Africa.
“The state’s vast arable land and other agricultural potentials, if added to its population, will make Kano a force to reckon with in sub-saharan African agro-market. Those who listened to my speech in Kaduna would have heard about my plan for agriculture.“Aside working with the private sector to make input available that would guarantee greater yield, among other incentives, we will ensure all categories of farmers have easy access to finance through appropriate government and private sector initiatives.
“We have seen the wonders from the CBN Anchor Borrowers Programme, and the Presidential Fertilizer Initiative. We will consolidate on those gains. Kano’s famous dams such as Tiga, Chalawa Gorge, Thomas, Kusalla, etc that are not being maximally tapped will get special attention from my government. We will invest in the expansion of irrigation land, channelisation of the water, among other initiatives that will ensure we cultivate these lands all year round.“We will not stop in investing and boosting our agricultural potentials, we will add value throughout the value chain. Through Commodity Exchange markets, we will link markets like Dawanau in Kano and Gujungu in Jigawa with international markets and boost return on investment for our farmers. The overall aim is to move the nation from import oriented to export oriented economy, where grains from Kano will be exported to world market rather than us buying from other countries.
“I know of the commercial exploits of some of you, traders and businessmen in Kwari Textile Market, Sabongari Market, Singer Market and the famous grain market in Dawanau, which transacts with the rest of West Africa. These commercial activities alone can provide the state with enough IGR to maintain itself with the right support and policies.“Beyond trading and commerce, I have a special interest in addressing the problem of the dead or comatose Kano industrial estates in Sharada, Bompai, Panshekara, Jogana, etc, which were vibrant in 70s and 80s. We understand the reason why those companies collapsed and we have a plan to revive them and make them competitive.
“We will provide incentives for industrial development nationwide through institutions like the Bank of Industry. There will be a deliberate policy to create industrial hubs and free zones specific to every region. For Kano, we will give attention to agro-allied industries such as textiles, tomato paste, rice processing, animal feeds, etc, in line with the state’s competitive advantages.”
Atiku: Tinubu Has No Record of Keeping Promises
The Atiku/Okowa Presidential Campaign Organisation has told the people of Kano State to disregard the fluke promises made to them by Tinubu, because he and the APC were not known to keep their words.The Atiku Campaign, in a statement by one of its spokespersons, kola Ologbondiyan, however, said its candidate, Atiku and running mate, Ifeanyi Okowa, were promise keepers, who had always and would continue to fulfill all the promises they’ve made to Nigerians.Dismissing Tinubu’s assertion on giving Nigerians 100 per cent of his time, Atiku Campaign pointed out that Tinubu has proven to be unreliable and unavailable for governance as he has been spending his optimal time out of the country for undisclosed reasons.
On the other hand, the PDP said its candidate was a full time personality both in words and actions as he has demonstrated in and out of office.“The people of Kano have not forgotten all the fake promises made to Nigerians by the APC, where Asiwaju is national leader, including bringing the naira to the same value with the US dollar, building one refinery each for the first four years of President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration, giving loans to undergraduate students and paying N5000 to aged men and women,” Atiku Campaign noted, stressing that almost eight years down the tenure, not the littlest of these promises had been fulfilled.
Continuing, the Atiku Campaign said it was heart-rending that Tinubu could return to Kano to release another set of fake promises, whereas his campaign covenant of 2015 and 2019 were like water poured into a basket.“We are not surprised that Tinubu is only making token promises without detailing how they will be achieved. He wants to boost agriculture and link international markets with commodity without addressing the troubling issue of insecurity, which is primal on Atiku Abubakar’s list,” the Atiku Campaign said, adding that,Tinubu has failed to provide solutions to rising costs and the exponential inflation, which the APC that he led had caused the nation.
“Nigerians must be cautious of beguilers and rent-seekers, who are now showboating as managerial experts. The question which Tinubu needs to answer is why did he not make his sweet coated solutions to our national challenges to President Muhammadu Buhari in the last seven years? Is Tinubu saying he deliberately railroad President Buhari to failure for his personal interest?” he said.
In yet another state by Ologbondiyan, the PDP presidential campaign has said the huge number of supporters that attended the party’s presidential campaigns in Edo, Niger and Katsina States signposted that the APC was heading for outright defeat at the general election next year.Ologbondiyan asserted that the empty streets that stared at Tinubu, in Kano, at the weekend, signposted the road to extinction for the APC ahead of the 2023 election.
On the other hand, he said the huge crowd of Nigerians that received Atiku at his campaign rally in Benin, Edo State, as well as the two separate rallies held in Bida and Jibia in Niger and Katsina States, were manifest proofs that Nigerians were resolute in voting for Atiku Abubakar as the next President of Nigeria.Ologbondiyan observed that the “thoughtless display of opulence” by Tinubu at his flopped Kano visit was completely repugnant and offensive to the people of Kano State, who could not be swayed by pointless material showboating.
Advising Tinubu to immediately apologise and rescind from such trips and actions, Ologbondiya said, “Nigerians in Kano watched in awe as a convoy of vehicles paraded the streets of Kano municipal without eliciting any attention from bystanders, who went about their normal businesses.
“In a recorded video that has gone viral, one of the bystanders was heard saying; ‘God has shown them clearly that people aren’t supporting them. No one is concerned about them. It is very shameful; Kano people are not with them,” he said.Ologbondiyan further noted that unlike the APC shameful outing in Kano, Atiku’s campaign was gaining traction across the country, because of his tenacity in addressing the issues and challenges brought upon Nigerians by the APC.
“His determination to revive the economy while making the unity of our nation number one priority sits well among Nigerians. He has also sworn to make insecurity a part of our sordid past by making state police a plank of the security solutions he will introduce, when sworn into office on May 29, 2023. Atiku is bringing the light to our dark side. He is creating hope in our state of disillusionment,” Ologbondiyan said.
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