Bola Tinubu, the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), says his administration would revive Nigeria’s dead industries if elected in 2023.
Tinubu said this during his town hall meeting with the business community and organised private sector on Tuesday in Lagos.
At the meeting, the APC presidential candidate laid out his action plan before the business leaders, while he noted that his administration will target double-digit gross domestic product (GDP) growth.
In a statement by Tunde Rahman, Tinubu’s media aide, business leaders at the event include Aliko Dangote, president of Dangote Group; Jim Ovia, chairman of Zenith Bank; Tony Elumelu, chairman of UBA; Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede, former chief executive of Access Bank; Herbert Wigwe, group chief executive of Access Bank, among others.
Tinubu said having achieved similar economic success as Lagos state governor, he has the capacity to repeat the same in the country as president.
“Lagos is an appropriate venue for this meeting. You may have heard that I was once governor of this dynamic economic force,” Tinubu said.
“However, may I remind you that when I first entered the office, Lagos was a different story. My team and I developed a blueprint, a master plan, for Lagos. I can say that plan has been largely successful.
“We turned this state into a safer, more prosperous place where people can go about any legitimate vocation or venture regardless of their ethnicity, religion, region, or prior social status. We did more than open Lagos for business. We opened the door for all Nigeria to join and experience the decent things progressive democratic governance can bring.
“We were not perfect but we did a lot. In doing so, we worked hand in hand with the business community as partners sharing the same goals of prosperity and renewed hope. Well, as you might have heard at some point recently, I now stand before you, seeking a bigger yet similar job.”
The APC presidential candidate called on the business community to join hands with him to achieve his plans, stating that a viable economy requires collaboration between the political and business communities.
Tinubu said the nation needs to move from dependence on exporting its raw materials to nations that sell the finished products at exorbitant prices to one that refines its raw materials for upward export itself.
Tinubu further itemised his administration’s plans to build on the achievements of the President Muhammadu Buhari-led government.
These, he said, include reviving dead industries, promoting agriculture, providing power, producing and using made-in-Nigeria goods, building infrastructure, and improving the country’s security.
“I have saved the single most important point for last. May I conclude with my thoughts on security? We shall continue the fight against insecurity by redefining our counterinsurgency doctrine and practice,” the presidential candidate said.
“Our response to terror, kidnapping, and violent criminality will be defined by the following elements. We shall enlist more people in the armed forces, security services and the police. Our forces will be given better tactical communications, and mobility as well as improved aerial and ground surveillance capacity.
“Through these and other measures, we shall better identify, monitor, track, and defeat these evil groups where they are. They shall have no respite until they surrender or are utterly defeated”.
