A front-line politician and chieftain of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in the South East geopolitical zone, Prince Chemberline Okechukwu Adiaso has given kudos to the National Leader of APC, Senator Bola Tinubu, while condemning former President Olusegun Obasanjo and former Military President, Gen Ibrahim Babangida (rtd.) for suggesting that President Muhammadu Buhari should abandon his 2019 election bid.
In a statement made available to newsmen, Adiaso described Senator Tinubu as a bridge builder who had contributed immensely to the success of the ruling party. He said that Tinubu had exhibited the qualities of a statesman, unlike Obasanjo and Babangida who resorted to writing open letters that were self-serving and capable of causing disaffection and distractions in the country.
Adiaso urged the two former leaders to emulate Senator Tinubu who had been peaceful and accommodating, thus refraining from criticising the government unnecessarily. He also charged them to learn the virtue of humility from Tinubu, who despite being the power behind the throne, never sought to arrogate power to himself.
The APC chieftain hailed President Muhammadu Buhari’s directive that Tinubu should reconcile aggrieved party members, stating that the directive was a welcome development, which recognised the qualities of Tinubu as an experienced and national stabiliser.
Adiaso, who is a renowned philanthropist, catalogued the achievements of the Buhari administration, noting that tremendous achievements had been made in the three main areas of focus of the government; namely fixing the economy, fighting corruption and ensuring security in the country.
He said that the administration had performed creditably in revamping the economy, which was battered by the consequences of over-dependence on a single commodity as well as unprecedented looting of the treasury by the previous administration.
The party stalwart hailed the Buhari administration for its dogged fight against corruption and for successfully tackling the Boko Haram insurgency in the North East.
He remarked that the Federal Government was not relenting in addressing the intractable conflict between cattle herders and farmers in Benue, Adamawa, Nasarawa and Taraba states, not minding the fact that the clashes predated the APC administration.
The APC chieftain joined other Nigerians in calling on President Muhammadu Buhari to run for another term, describing those opposed to the move as being blind to the numerous achievements of the APC government.
He said that with President Mohamadu Buhari’s performances so far, he deserved to be supported for a second tenure in office. He, therefore, charged all Igbos to join the bandwagon in giving the president a massive support towards the 2019 elections.
Adiaso charged the Igbos to ensure that they registered for the up-coming elections by obtaining their permanent voters card. He advised people of the South East and South-South to embrace the APC to guarantee a prime place in the central government. For the Igbos, he noted that their best chance of producing the President of Nigeria in 2023 lay with backing Buhari for 2019.
Adiaso observed that the APC government would not have exited recession through a mere order or if the administration had not put on its thinking cap. He noted that Foreign Reserves rose to $40b, the highest level in about four years, and up from $24 billion just a year ago.
He said that having stabilised the Naira, the Buhari administration had succeeded in driving increased investment inflows, thus making Nigeria’s stock market emerge as one of the best-performing in the world, delivering returns in excess of 40 per cent.
Adiaso stated that the positive indices were beginning to impact positively on Nigerians, especially with the good news coming from the agricultural sector, which was recording a bumper harvest, bringing down the cost of foodstuffs.
