The Presidential Candidate of the Labour Party (LP), Mr. Peter Obi, has related Nigeria to a vehicle with knocked engine caused by the recklessness and quackery of its past drivers, saying that a new Nigeria is possible if entrusted into the hands of trained, confident and fully qualified drivers, Baba Datti Ahmed and himself. Obi stated this during the campaign rally at the Lekan Salami Stadium, Ibadan.
Obi who was introduced by the Director-General of the Campaign, Dr. Doyin Okupe, started his speech by paying glowing tributes to late Chief Obafemi Awolowo and Ladoke Akintola. He also paid tributes to the current leaders of the Yorubas, especially Pa Ayo Adebanjo, who was there physically and the Afenifere.
Obi said that by standing on the side of equity and justice, that Afenifere has stood out as one of the custodians of the conscience of the nation. He said that justice, equity and fairness remained the only durable foundation for the future of a prosperous Nigeria.
Dwelling at length on the trajectory of his government, Obi said that their first priority would be to secure and unite Nigeria and Nigerians, move the country from consumption to production. He also talked about bringing back the greatness of Nigerian cities by building on their strength, thus restoring Lagos as the financial capital of Africa; Ibadan as a strong industrial and educational base; the vast North as the food basket of the country.
Obi decried the use of tribe, religion and ethnicity as an instrument of division and vowed that Datti and himself would ignore those distractions and use their experiences as wealth creators to expand the national cake for everybody to equitably enjoy.
Earlier in his speech, Pa Ayo Adebanjo, whose over 90 years made him an unlikely participant at a political rally, said he was determined to attend in his desire to see the birth of equitable, strong and fair Nigeria, which Obi/Datti’s candidature represented.
While Aisha Yesuf, who was present, described what was happening as the promise of a great future, saying it was about time all those that were manifestly part of the old order cleared from the road to renewal, which Obi’s quest represented.
In her vote of thanks, the in-coming First Lady, Mrs Margaret Peter-Obi, urged Nigerians to show sustained commitment to the movement for renewal by collecting their PVCs.