With less than a week before the presidential primaries and national convention of the All Progressives Congress, Bola Tinubu’s strong professional and political records, according to Yobe State Governor Mai Mala Buni and his Borno State counterpart, Prof. Babagana Umara Zulum, set him beyond other presidential candidates in 2023.
The two governors spoke separately When Tinubu, the APC national leader and presidential hopeful, visited their two states to meet with delegates to the party’s convention and presidential primaries.
Speaking on Tinubu, Governor Buni said: “The history of democratic struggle in Nigeria cannot be complete without a mention of your tremendous work, from NADECO days to being the last man standing and preventing our nation from being a one-party state. For us in Yobe, this is a homecoming. You are here to interface with your brothers and sisters our delegates. Yobe is your home and you are home.”
In Yobe, according to a statement issued by the Tinubu Media Office, the one-time federal lawmaker emphasised the importance of the state in Nigeria’s agricultural revolution.
“On arriving here, we flew over large expanses of land, land with agricultural potential. It made me happy as I know we can and will transform Yobe. We will make it a productive state; employ mechanised irrigation and process sorghum and cotton for local consumption and export.
“We must utilise our potential as a country to train and employ our youths, deploy modern technology, lower consumer prices, feed our growing population and export finished products. We must also establish commodity exchange boards and consider credit reforms so as to better support our agricultural value chain.”
Speaking on insecurity in the North-East, Tinubu said: “I view the issue of insecurity with utmost seriousness and will give it the highest priority in my administration. Our military, police force and security agencies are committed and capable. They have sacrificed much and lost many colleagues in the noble and necessary battle to protect this nation from threats. We must help their brave efforts by further equipping them with high-grade, advanced military/law enforcement assets and by fashioning strategies appropriate for the challenges we face.”
Tinubu travelled from Damaturu, Yobe State’s capital, to Maiduguri, Borno State, to meet APC delegates led by Governor Babagana Zulum, who greeted him enthusiastically in Government House’s multi-purpose hall.
Tinubu underlined his commitment to revamping important sectors of the country in order to stabilise the economy, provide job opportunities, ensure security, and upgrade infrastructure, among other things, when speaking to the delegates.
“We will implement structural, economic and social reforms to lay the foundation for long-term sustainable growth. Industrialisation policies will no longer be confined to the pages of government reports. They will be put into action. My administration will put them into action.” he said.
Senator Kashim Shettima, the state’s former governor, praised Tinubu as “a king who has made many kings” and “the candidate best qualified to manage Nigeria at this critical time.”
Governor Zulum praised Tinubu’s record as an unrivalled statesman, citing the former Lagos governor’s long-standing commitment to Nigerian unity.
Zulum restated his and Borno delegates’ support for Tinubu’s emergence as president, saying that his work as a nation builder began even before he led the alliance that ended in the foundation of the APC in 2014. He also prayed that God would grant the APC leader victory.
On the side lines of his meeting with delegates in the two states, the APC leader had paid courtesy calls on the Emir of Damaturu, Hashimi II El-Kanemi, and the Shehu of Borno, Abubakar Ibn Umar Garbai El-Kanemi, who cut short his visit out of Maiduguri to receive Tinubu.
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