Yahaya Bello, Governor of Kogi State has officially declared his intention to contest for the 2023 presidency on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Bello who made his intention public on Saturday at the Eagle Square in Abuja, said Nigerians deserve a better treatment.
He said:
“Dear friends and fellow patriots, I wish to declare my intention to run for President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in the 2023 General Elections. I will be doing so under the auspices of our great Party, the All Progressives Congress (APC). I will be running on a broad political philosophy of progressive activism through social action and political reforms.
The Kogi governor said that he was in the race to win election and consolidate on the achievements of President Muhammadu Buhari.
He said his administration would not allow non-state actors to carry arms against the state, adding that it would do everything possible to enthrone unity and progress of the nation.
“Despite the dire challenges facing Nigeria today, no one can deny that President Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR has given our country the greatest achievements in public works, government housing and social services since this 4th Republic began.
“In addition, this administration has invested heavily in our national security. The war against insecurity may be taking longer than earlier expected but President Buhari has ensured that we have the combat resources to keep hitting our foes hard until victory is achieved.
“It can also not be denied that under this APC government, Nigeria is pushing forward the most comprehensive proposals for restructuring since Independence. The sum of government policies, the Electoral Act and other statutes enacted and the ongoing amendment of our Constitution is fundamentally changing the way we do things.
“For instance, the average Nigerian Governor has more powers today over matters of security, public transportation, taxation, fiscal federalism, mineral and agro resources, electricity, etc than at any other time in our history. These are the legacies of Mr. President. They will help the next president take longer and easier developmental strides, provided Nigerians make sure he is succeeded by one who is not out to discredit but to consolidate. I have proven time and time again that I am the only such successor in the APC’s line-up for 2023.
“I am running for President because I see a bright light shining at the end of the tunnel for our nation. I am not one of those who only see doom and gloom. It is my intention to take custody of that light, to pierce the dark spots in our past and present with it, to illuminate every gap in our nationhood and to fix them. I will ensure that this light is handed over in due course to successors who will be trustworthy stewards of the great future which a federal government led by me will build for our nation,” Bello stated.
The Kogi State Governor promised that while the Buhari administration has a target of lifting 100m Nigerians out of poverty by 2030, his Presidency will have an additional target of creating at least 20 million Naira millionaires by the same year with the aim that each of them will employ or otherwise empower at least five other citizens.
Read also: Your support will see me through in presidential election – Yahaya Bello
“In this regard, we are going to learn a lot from the South East. The apprenticeship model, by which a boy, from an indigent or affluent background, is taken, trained and turned into a millionaire businessman in as little as 10 years is one we have to understudy and invest in. Harvard University already studies it and the Nigerian Government must do no less.
“I have personally observed that this model works on average 50percent of the time with at least 5 out of 10 boys who apprenticed with various Igbo friends of mine millionaires today in their own rights. I also observed that it is not the line of business but the underlying principles and practices that work so well.
This is because this amazing phenomenon is repeated sector after sector whether they deal in vehicle spare parts, electrical, pharmaceuticals, clothing, or even foodstuffs, etc. This means it is a system that can be replicated. We will explore methods to do so,” he added.
…Picks Hafsat, MKO Abiola’s daughter, as presidential campaign DG
Hafsat Abiola-Costello, daughter of the late Kashimawo Olawale Abiola (MKO)
Hafsat Abiola-Costello, daughter of the late Kashimawo Olawale Abiola (MKO), is the director-general of the Governor Yahaya Bello presidential campaign organisation.
Bello, a presidential aspirant of the All Progressives Congress (APC), formally declared his intention to run for president on Saturday at Eagle Square, Abuja.
Addressing the audience at the event, Abiola-Costello said her appointment as the campaign DG is a historic achievement and a turning point for Nigerian women in politics.
Describing herself as the first female DG of a presidential campaign organisation, she stressed that women will no longer be cooks and singers during election campaigns.
According to her, “Today, we start our march to our destiny. We have been sidelined for decades. Since Nigeria’s independence, we have been struggling to put the Nigerian people at the centre of our government. Nigerians are poor but Nigeria is not poor.
“Nigeria’s money has been stolen, the people are coming under attack on a daily basis,” she said.
“It is with all sense of humility and due sense of history that we say to all Nigerians today that the train to our destiny is about to take off. We are all on the march to Nigeria’s true destiny as the greatest black nation in the world.
“I congratulate all the women here. Nigerian women have been made into cooks and singers. Today, I am the first woman director-general of a presidential campaign organisation.
“We are not just cooking, we are not just singing. We are going to build this country.
“Today, we signal to all the vested interests in Nigeria that the takeover by Nigerian women, by Nigeria’s young people has begun. Nothing is going to stop our march to Aso Rock in 2023.”
Abiola further stated that said she will lead the campaign across the country to canvass support for the Kogi State governor, adding that Bello is the leader that is coming.
Notable politician, Senator Jonathan Silas Zwingina is the national coordinator and chairman of the presidential campaign while Femi Fani-Kayode, former Minister of Aviation, is the deputy national coordinator and deputy chairman.