…says he has requisite experience to become Nigeria’s next President
By Chimezie Godfrey
The Coalition of Northern Youth For Good Governance in Abuja Monday, endorsed the Minister of Transportation, Mr Rotimi Amaechi as its preferred candidate for the APC come 2023 presidential elections.
The coalition in a press statement delivered by the convener, Com. Abdullahi Bilal noted that a cursory review of topical issues show that things have gone horribly wrong as underpinned by the frequent reports of security breaches, communal crisis, violent crimes amongst others.
The Coalition commended President Buhari’s administration for its diversification and for positively abrupting the old way of “business as usual”, adding that the current administration has entrenched a regime of accountability and infrastructural development ahead of individual interests.
According to the statement, critics never play up the statistics for PoS transactions and the volume of money that exchanges hands on the e-commerce platform, as a result of President Buhari’s effort in diversification of the economy.
The Coalition therefore stated that President Buhari having set the country on the course of diversification and economic reform, must be succeeded by a candidate who will continue with the legacies and momentum of the present administration.
Part of the statement reads, “For the purpose of continuity, the Coalition of Northern Youth for Good Governance has a preference that the All Progressive Congress (APC) continues its run in office. That way Nigeria will not suffer losses that arise because of the government of different political party deciding not to press ahead with the policies and projects inaugurated by the outgoing government. It is on record that Nigeria has lost much to the lack of continuity in government.
“We have consequently critically assessed the eminent Nigerians that have indicated their interest to contest for the office of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and have zeroed in on the Honourable Minister of Transport, Mr. Rotimi Amaechi. He deserves to succeed President Buhari and for good reasons.”
The Coalition further noted that Mr Rotimi Amaechi at 56 years, straddles the age divide as he is between “the too old” and inexplicably inexperienced.
The Coalition also stated that Amaechi has weathered the expected crisis that popped up during his political career and has thus proven that he is able to absorb the pressure that comes with the job of the President.
“During this career so far, we have also noted him to be a man that always stands on the side of equity.
“At 56 years, he is easily the connection between the youth and the older generation. As a bonus, while we concede that it is God that gives good health, Ameachi does not have the burden of old age-related health challenges that Nigerians are concerned about in some candidates,” it noted.
The Minister of Transportation has been in the state parliament, been a state governor and is currently part of the Federal Executive Council as a Minister, which has afforded him the requisite experience for the job.
“He is conversant with what the country needs and being an appointee of President Buhari, he is in tune with the vision of the incumbent and would therefore be effective in continuing with all the laudable policies and projects that are in place with the capacity to advance them to the next logical phase,” the statement added.
According to the coalition, Amaechi, in terms of having a national outlook is well grounded in this department.
“He is a friend of the north in addition to having the right connection with the south-west, south-east and his south-south geo-political region.
“He is a fair-minded person and will be kind to all Nigerians, especially when he has repeatedly proven that has no religious discriminations.
“We will not end this briefing without touching on the feat that Mr. Amaechi has achieved with his laudable reforms and performance in the transport sector. If as a Minister he was able to translate President Buhari’s agenda to reality on the scale which he did one can only wonder the extent to which he will perform when given the opportunity to pilot the affairs of Nigeria.
“It is on this note that we are calling on Mr. Rotimi Amaechi to enter the contest for the APC Presidential race with all the seriousness required for the task of continuing from where President tenure will end,” the coalition pointed out.
The Coalition advised that Amachi must ignore the antics of detractors that have been discouraging him from taking on this task. “We urge the APC to narrow its search for a presidential candidate to Rotimi Amaechi while urging the other aspirants to throw their support behind him.”
