A member of the National Working Committee (NWC) of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) Hon. Nze Chidi Duru, has said both Peter Obi of Labour Party (LP) and Musa Kwankwaso of New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), or another are not threat to emergence of presidential candidate of APC, Bola Tinubu in 2023 general elections.
Hon. Duru, who is the Deputy National Organising Secretary said APC remain an established and the dominant political party, adding that the ruling party still a better choice for Nigerians to make because of the “hope that the candidate (Tinubu) brings to the table.”
Speaking with newsmen Sunday in Abuja on various issues regarding the just concluded special convention of APC where Bola Tinubu emerged the presidential candidate, Duru said though Nigerians will be the judge at the end but the candidate that better reflects hope that the country is yearning for is Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
The Deputy National Organising Secretary admitted that there were opportunities the current administration missed, but added that Tinubu’s presidency offers hope to the Nation.
“Peter Obi comes with an incredible credentials as well as Kwankwaso. You cannot deny the fact that they have swaths of followership not only their areas or zone but also across the country. What I do not know is whether this followership will translate to a voting possibility during the election.
“However, having said that, the point we need to make is that APC is the dominant political party. There are two established parties in Nigeria which is APC and PDP.
“When it matter most and when we get down to the work, it will be a choice for the country to make and the choice for the country to make in my view will remain the hope that the candidate bring to the table, his achievements, what he has achieved in his private and public life and the kind of bridge building that bring all the component parts of Nigeria together.
“And I think the candidate that better reflects or represent this will remain the candidate of APC which I believe that Nigerians will be the judge at the end of the day.”
When asked whether Nigerians still trust the APC to re-elect the party in 2023, the APC chieftain said: “I do not think it is a matter of APC and what this government have done well. It’s a matter that the Naira speaks in only one language whether you are the APC and PDP.
“Yes, we cannot deny the fact that a lot more progress need to have been made and we cannot deny the fact that there’s hardship in the land. We can also not deny the fact that there are missed opportunities. However, what will this candidate bring is hope, that all hope is not lost. That in areas where we’ve done well, we will continue to do well. In areas where we’ve not done well, there will be critical strategic inputs to improve on those areas, to arrest the days of the locusts and then take Nigeria back to the path of prosperity and that is devoid of party leanings.
“At the end of the day, whether you like it or not if you are the governor of a state and then there is insecurity in your land, it doesn’t speak the language of APC or PDP. It speaks the language of humanity.
“So when the development is not there. It speaks to all of us. So what this present candidate and what the party will offer to Nigerians is hope. That this candidate have seen it all. That This candidate have walked the talk. This candidate from being a legislator to being an Executive Governor have also deployed his God-given talent in showcasing what is possible. And that given mandate that he will introduce into the national landscape.”
