Former Chief of Staff to Governor Nasir el-Rufai, Muhammad Sani Abdullahi Dattijo, has urged All Progressives Congress (APC) members from the Northwest to mobilise grassroots support and work together to lead APC to victory come 2023.
Addressing the APC Stakeholders’ Forum Northwest Conference on Tuesday in Kaduna, Dattijo, who was the immediate past Kaduna state Commissioner for Planning and Budget Commission and current APC senatorial candidate for Kaduna Central, Northwest contributed 46% of total votes to APC victory in 2015 and 39% of total votes in 2019, hence if the region can make similar effort in 2023, it would lead Sen. Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Sen. Kashim Shettima to victory again.
“Campaign starts in few weeks and we have to be ready. Northwest is critical to the success of APC in 2023 we must be prepared to give the party the required votes to win the election. We have two fantastic candidates for president and vice president, candidates that we can be proud of, candidates with track record and candidates that can lead Nigeria to development. We need to come up with what we have for Nigerians on security, agriculture, education, health and various multidimensional issues across the country.
“We have 8,012 polling units in Kaduna state, to win the election we need a minimum of 10 people to call another 10 people for APC in each ward for us to win this election,” he said.
Chairman of the event and Director General of Nigeria First Integrity Group, Dr. Nasiru Ladan Argungu, said the APC presidential and vice presidential candidates are people who have the needed competence and are capable of transforming Nigeria having transformed Lagos and Borno states respectively.
“We don’t have any other home apart from Nigeria. Our presidential and vice presidential candidates are intelligent, articulate, sharp and coherent with vast knowledge as far as blue, green and digital economy is concerned.
“As soon as they are elected, they can form a good economic team to lead Nigeria out of where we have found ourselves. They both started from the grassroots before becoming Governor of Lagos and Borno states. They brought transformation to their states and being older and wiser they can transform Nigeria too when elected. It’s not about age but the ability and capability that determines what a leader would achieve. I believe Tinubu and Shettima can and will lead Nigeria to glory,” he said.
The Director General Bureau of Interfaith, Hon. Tahir Umar Tahir, in his remarks said rather than dwell on the issue of Muslim Muslim ticket, Nigerians should work towards having peaceful coexistence between one another.
“We need peaceful coexistence between one religion and the other in every state then things would take proper shape. Tinubu/ Shettima candidacy should not cause propaganda rather what matters is the competency of the candidates. Let’s mend fences, work together discuss issues and not harbour hatred between one another but maintain peace with one another,” he said.
