A former President of the Senate and presidential aspirant on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party, Dr. Bukola Saraki, on Sunday, met with the former governor of Kaduna State, Senator Ahmed Makari, delegates, and other stakeholders in Kaduna ahead of the party’s primary.
Saraki told the delegates that he was in the state to formally intimate them of his intention to vie for the 2023 presidency and seek their support, while also stressing the importance of the state in the social, economic, and political affairs of the country.
The former Senate President, who lamented the sorry state of insecurity in the country, especially in the North-West, said if elected president, he would turn the tide by securing Nigeria.
He noted that if elected Nigeria’s president, he would ensure that Nigerians would no longer pay for medical services.
This is just as he said he had the capacity to unite Nigerians, adding that he would serve as a bridge-builder between the North and the South, as well as the old and young.
According to him, without unity, there would be no peace and progress, adding that the delegates should elect someone like him that could lead and unite Nigerians irrespective of religious or ethnic affinities.
Saraki said, “We all know that economically, politically or socially, without the blessings of Kaduna State, nothing will happen. This is the reality. It’s the Almighty Allah that makes it so. You can’t change it. That’s why I am here to formally inform you to seek your support that in 2023 through your effort, you will make me the next President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
“Distinguished delegates, 2023 is not a time to just vote anybody as president. This country is in a very difficult situation and nobody knows it better than Kaduna State. In 2015, you get into your car, day time, night time, and drive to Abuja. You could fly into Abuja, but today, that is not the case. Today, a lot of our young people don’t have jobs.
“Today, there is disunity across the place. We cannot continue like this as a country. This country needs somebody that can stand. That’s why you need a bold and courageous person that can stand for Nigerians.
“This country needs somebody that can show that he can look out for Nigerians first and I have done that in the past and I will always continue to look out for Nigeria first. As Senate President, I stood for Nigerians. I was chased, hunted and I said no. I am going to stand for Nigerians. If I can do that as Senate President with your support, I will also do it as President of Nigeria.
“I will not stop until I end insecurity in Nigeria, especially in the Northwest. We will end banditry. Our farmers will be able to go back to the farm because when I was a Senate President, we had security summits. But with your vote, you will have security back. Our children will go to school without fear.
“I promise you that because, for those that know me, I am full of energy. I will work and work and work. This is no time to talk. This is time for action. Secondly and more importantly, I am a man who brings people together. I am a man that will unite Nigerians.
“I am a bridge between the North and the South. I am a bridge between the old and the young. Until you unite all Nigerians, we won’t have progress. You need a man who will unite all Nigerians. You need a man who will bring back all the moribund industries.
“My dear delegates, this is a time to find somebody that is not only respected here but also respected internationally because you also need that connection. You need a Nigerian that will continue to protect education.
“As a doctor, I will ensure that nobody pays for medical services anymore. This is doable and I will do it so that our brothers will not go about looking for money for hospital admission. Let us find that person who can lead and unite us because, without unity, there can’t be peace. Without unity, there can’t be progress and without unity, there can’t be economic empowerment.”
Earlier in his address, the state PDP chairman and former Minister of State, Ministry of Aviation, Felix Hyat, noted that in the history of Nigeria, there was never a time the upper chamber of the National Assembly stood by Nigerians like under the Saraki era as Senate President.
Hyat described the former lawmaker as a humble person, saying “You are a humble person that people know. You don’t make noise and you are a person that age is on your side.”
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